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The Silo Is a Necessary Adjunct of the Dairy Farm 



Making the Dairy Pay 



By N. P. HULL 



President American Dairy Farmers' Association; Lecturer National 
Grange Patrons of Husbandry 




N. P. Hull and his brother farm 350 acres. Their father died 
when the author was four years of age and his brother two. The 
mother rented the farm for ten years. Then the boys worked it 
for four years and it was rented for five years while they went to 
college and studied medicine. After graduation the young men 
started as partners to fix up and sell the farm, and they have been 
fixing up ever since. They have bought all the land surrounding the 
original farm, and have enlarged or built new buildings. They run 
from 30 to 50 Holstein cows and sell whole milk to a condensery. 



THE PHELPS PUBLISHING COMPANY 

SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS 

1913 



SF&39 

.Ms 



Copyright, 19 13 

Phelps Publishing Company 

Springfield, Mass. 



JAN -2 1914 

5'CtA361404 



Table of Qontents 

Page 

CHAPTER I 
A Word to Readers 1 

CHAPTER II 
Dairying with General Farming 5 

CHAPTER III 
Essentials for Profitable Dairying 10 

CHAPTER IV 
Building a Herd by Breeding and Selection 12 

CHAPTER V 
Improvement by Selection and Elimination 18 

CHAPTER VI 
Feeding Dairy Cows for Profit 35 

CHAPTER VII 
Care of the Dairy Herd 57 

CHAPTER VIII 
Summer or Winter Dairying 63 

CHAPTER IX 
Dairy Barns and Equipment 65 

CHAPTER X 
Crops for the Dairy Farm__ 71 

CHAPTER XI 
Silos and Silage 74 

CHAPTER XII 
Farm Care of Milk and Cream 76 

CHAPTER XIII 
The Outlook for Dairying 79 

ADDENDA 
By-Laws for Testing Associations 80 



CHAPTER 1 

71 Word to Readers 

I do not want to call the first chapter of this book 
an introduction, for readers usually skip the introduc- 
tion. I want this to be as much my introduction to the 
reader as his to the things written. More and more 
each year the busy and discriminating reader endeav- 
ors to select from the great mass of matter offered not 
only that which is true, but that which is most practical 
for him. He desires exactly the sort of information 
that will give him the greatest ability to so handle his 
business and solve his problems as to economically 
accomplish the ends sought. 

I shall not attempt to make this work a new con- 
tribution to the science of dairying. It is rather a plain 
statement of the absolute essentials of practical dairy 
farming. I shall not attempt to exploit new theories 
nor settle disputed questions. Rather shall I attempt 
to set forth in a plain, understandable way just how 
I, like thousands of others in very ordinary circum- 
stances and with limited capital, have succeeded in 
making dairying a valuable adjunct to my farm opera- 
tions. 

HOW I LEARNED IT 

What I know about profitable dairying I learned 
in a dairy school taught by the dairy cow in my own 
barn. The many valuable suggestions from outside 
sources have been tested in my own dairy and adopted 
or rejected as results warranted. I only ask the 
reader who questions the practical value of the facts 
stated or the advice given in the following pages to test 
fairly their value for himself. 



Z MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 

Years of farmers' institute work and special dairy 
work under the auspices of state 'dairy commissions 
and associations, and in dairy organizations nation 
wide in their scope have given me a splendid oppor- 
tunity to study country-wide dairy conditions. This 
work has also enabled me to visit the dairies and learn 
the methods of many of the most successful dairymen 
of this country. The knowledge thus gained enables 
me to assure my readers that the principles that make 
for profitable dairying in one section of the country 
hold good in every other section. Likewise, I have 
learned beyond question that no man can achieve max- 
imum profit in dairying who does not either con- 
sciously or unconsciously practice the essentials out- 
lined in the following pages. 

SUCCESSFUL DAIRYING IS PROFITABLE DAIRYING 

Most of us count a venture a success if it ends as 
we purposed it should. My conception of successful 
dairying is that sort which pays a fair profit on the 
investment of time and money. 

I have seen many dairies conducted, it seemed to 
me, for the mere fun of the game. At least no other 
result was apparent. To me it seems that to conduct a 
dairy so as to make it pay yields just as much fun and 
a great deal more satisfaction. 

When a man puts a part of his time into his dairy 
operations the commercial value of that part of his life 
is determined by the profit of his dairy during that 
space of time. There is small excuse for most of us 
not making an honest and intelligent endeavor to get as 
large a value from our time as we honestly can secure. 

Why any man should work hard to grow feed, 
milk cows and take care of the product without seri- 
ously endeavoring to make his work pay is a hard 



A WORD TO READERS 3 

question to answer, yet armies of men are wasting 
their lives doing just that thing. 

DOES YOUR HERD PAY? 

The majority of dairy herds in this country are 
making little or no profit. Is your herd one of them ? 
Can you answer this ? A large proportion of the cows 
kept in this country are inherently such poor stock that 
it is difficult, if not impossible, to make them produce 
at a profit. How many such cows are you keeping? 
Can you answer? 




Fig. 1— How Much Do Your Cows Make? 

The pictures show the product of a poor, a good and an 
exceptionally good dairy cow— 120 lbs, 360 lbs and 800 lbs 
i espectively. An exhibit at a western fair. 

An untold number of inherently good cows are 
not yielding their owners a profit because they have 
not been properly fed and cared for. Have you done 
your part toward enabling your cows to yield profit- 
ably? Can you answer? 

MONEY TO THE MAN WHO KNOWS 

Two young men were engaged in dairying in the 
same neighborhood. Both were advised to study good 
dairy methods and to know their business at least to 
the extent of ascertaining the individual merit of their 



4 MAKING THE DAISY PAY 

cows. One accepted the advice, secured scales and 
Babcock tester at a small cost and used them. The 
other said he was too busy and hadn't time to fool 
with it. 

After three years the first young man was getting 
an average of 250 pounds of butter per cow, the sec- 
ond young man an average of only 200 pounds tper 
cow. It required the proceeds from 150 pounds of this 
butter to pay for the feed the cows ate. Hence the 
one .had a profit of 100 pounds butter per cow, the other 
of only 50 pounds. 

The second young man thought he could not afford 
to take time to know his business. He has come now 
to a place where he must take time. He must take 
time to make up for what he did not know or practice. 
He must take time to plant crops and .harvest feed for 
his cows for another year, milk and care for them for 
another year, and get another 50 pounds of butter, 
representing profit. He will then have the same profit 
from his two years' work that the first young man 
secured in one year. Evidently he was mistaken when 
he concluded he could not afford to take time to know 
his business. 

NOTHING TO BRAG ABOUT 

America boasts that her farmers are the greatest 
producers of wealth the world has ever seen, yet we 
farmers are producing from our cows an average of 
only 145 pounds butter a year. The Danish farmer 
produces an average of 224 pounds per cow, and the 
Dutch farmer 250 pounds. Surely we have little rea- 
son to boast about our average dairy production. 

This book is written for those who are willing to 
join in an effort to increase the average production of 
the American cow and the profits of the American 
cow owner. 






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CHAPTER II 

Dairying With General Farming 

Practical farmers as well as students of agricul- 
tural production concede that the best method of main- 
taining the fertility of our farms is by live stock hus- 
bandry. Let the general farmer feed out the roughage 
and as large a part of his farm products as he profitably 
can on his farm, carefully husbanding the resulting 
manures and returning them to the land. 

Farmers of past generations, and too many of the 
present generation, have been soil robbers. We are 
now at a point where we must become soil builders, 
or we shall see the importance of agriculture and its 
products gradually dropping to a lower plane, inevi- 
tably lessening our national greatness. 

CHOOSING FARM LIVE STOCK 

The general farmer feels that he must grow some 
variety of legume, such as clover, alfalfa, soy beans, or 
peas, to replace economically the nitrogen that other 
crops take from his soil. These crops should be fed 
on the farm, together with the corn stover and other 
roughage. Naturally we want to feed these crops, rep- 
resenting a certain part of our labor and investment, 
to the animal that will give us the largest return for 
them. That animal, one year with another, is the good 
coiv. 

The good dairy cow is the most economical pro- 
ducer of human food of any animal in existence. As 
time goes on, and the problem of feeding our rapidly 
increasing people becomes more difficult, meat produc- 
tion must give way largely to milk production. 



() MAKING THE DAIRY FAY 

The dairy cow is a more efficient machine than is 
a meat-producing cow. A good dairy cow will pro- 
duce a pound of butter from but little if any more feed 
than is required by a steer to produce a pound of 
dressed beef. For some years past the farmer has 
been able to sell the pound of butter for about three 
times as much as he could get for the pound of dressed 
beef. More labor enters into the production of the 
butter than of the beef, but the difference is in no way 
commensurate with the difference in value of the 
product. The good dairy cow will, with generous and 
judicious feeding, yield in her milk three times the 
digestible nutrients fit for human consumption that the 
two-year-old steer will produce from the same amount 
of feed, used with equal judgment. 

I say the good cow, and I mean just that. Many 
cows are kept that are not doing what I have claimed 
for the good cow, but there is no good reason why the 
intelligent farmer should keep poor stock for any great 
length of time. 

DAIRY OFFERS CERTAIN PROFIT 

We plant or sow our farm crops at a certain sea- 
son, hoping to gather a liberal harvest at some future 
season. We are, in a sense, dealing in futures. We 
must accept the chances incident to drought, floods, 
heat, cold, insect pests and plant diseases. These ele- 
ments of uncertainty we cannot foresee nor guard 
against. 

Our ordinary farm animals are usually fed valua- 
ble feed until they reach a certain age, when they are 
sold. Here again we are dealing in futures — legitimate 
futures, to be sure, but often our profits are dependent 
upon market conditions that we could not foresee. 



DAIRYING WITH GENERAL FARMING / 

Some of these uncertainties enter into dairying, 
but many of them do not. When we get a good cow 
she is kept in the herd for 10 or 12 years. Except for 
a short period of rest she should have each year she 
is converting our grain, coarse feeds and grass into a 
valuable product and yielding that product twice each 
day. 

The farmer may know, nearly if not quite, what 
it costs to feed the cow and what values she returns 
for it. No animal can vie with the cow in yielding 
quick and steady returns, unless it is the hen, and she 
pays but once a day. 

On my farms I have both raised and bought steers 
and fed them. Some years they have made a profit 
and some years a loss. I have grown and fed hogs, 
usually at a profit, some years at a loss. I keep sheep, 
both wool and mutton breeds. Some years they have 
not paid. In all the years I have been keeping a dairy, 
however, there has never been a year that cows did not 
pay a liberal profit. 

STEADY CASH RECEIPTS INSURED 

Every farmer has a steady demand on his re- 
sources in such forms as bills for groceries, dry goods, 
repairs and hired help. It is most satisfactory and most 
economical to meet these bills promptly with cash. I 
know of nothing that comes so near insuring the farmer 
a steady cash income throughout the year as a good 
dairy herd well managed. 

INCREASING THE FARM FERTILITY 

The fertility of the farm is increased by plowing 
under such crops as clover, peas and soy beans, and by 
using commercial fertilizers. When crops are plowed 



8 MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 

down, however, and fertilizers bought, all the farmer 
gets from the use of his land and money is fertilizer. 
If, on the other hand, these crops are harvested and 
fed to good cows, money invested in commercial feeds 
and fed to good cows, and the manure carefully con- 
served, the farmer may get good pay for the use of 
his land, get his money back from his purchased feed 
with a profit and still have three-fourths of the original 
fertilizing value of crops and purchased feed to apply 
to his land. Thousands of farmers have proved be- 
yond question that a good dairy herd may make liberal 
profits, at the same time increasing the fertility of the 
farm. 

IS DAIRY FARMING TOO CONFINING? 

It is often asserted that dairying is confining and 
requires closer application than most other lines of 
farming. This is undoubtedly true. Cows must be 
milked twice a day, and must be fed and cared for 
regularly and systematically for best results. To some 
this ofTers a valid objection against dairying; to others 
it does not. It should not deter the young farmer who 
is anxious to succeed and who is made of the right 
material. He will learn, if he does not already know 
it, that very few people succeed in any business who 
are not willing to give close personal application to it. 

THE HELP PROBLEM IN THE DAIRY 

More labor is required in dairying than in other 
lines of animal husbandry. In some sections hired 
men are averse to milking cows. In many instances 
the farmers themselves are to blame for this prejudice. 
Too often they expect the help to work 10 hours in the 
field and then milk several cows. If the milking is 



DAIRYING WITH GENERAL FARMING 9 

made a part of the day's work most men had as soon 
milk as to do other farm work. I have found that 
dairying has helped solve the farm labor problem, as 
far as I have it solved. 

Before I kept a dairy I wanted men to work about 
seven months of the year. I found that good steady 
men want steady employment. With a dairy I am able 
to give them such employment. I now have tenant 
houses and hire married men by the year. When I get 
a good man I keep him for a term of years if possible. 
On the whole, the dairy farmer is not at a "disadvantage 
concerning hired help. 



CHAPTER III 



Essentials for Profitable Dairying 

By no means would I have readers conclude from 
the foregoing chapter that success comes to all who 
keep cows. There is a decided difference between 
cow-keeping and dairying. The dairy equation may be 
stated briefly thus : The dairy herd equals the dairy 
man. Seldom is a dairy herd found that excels in pro- 
duction the degree of wisdom and ambition attained 
by the man who selects, maintains, and manages the 
herd. 

Good cows, generous and judicious feeding and 
proper care are the three essential factors in develop- 
ing maximum profit in a dairy herd. They are essen- 
tial in every herd and in every section of the country. 
They are the cornerstone upon which rests profitable 
herd production. The degree of success attained by 

every dairyman is in direct 
proportion to the degree in 
which these factors are ap- 
preciated and intelligently 
incorporated into his plan 
of dairy procedure. 

The best herds are not 
gotten together by chance 
nor accident; they are 
rather the result of years 
of careful selection and 
breeding. It is encouraging 
rather than otherwise that 

.performance of pa i nst aking, intelligent ef- 
Two Herds Supplying *; , , 1 

Same Creamery. fort may develop a good 

10 



FEED HI 



MILK <36<T~1 LOSS I 



FEE D % I 



PROFIT 



ESSENTIALS FOR PROFITABLE DAIRYING 11 

herd of cows that may be so fed and handled as to 
insure liberal profits. 

A few years ago I had occasion to make a some- 
what close examination of dairy conditions about a cer- 
tain creamery. One farmer received from the cream- 
ery only $22 a cow, which was a return of but 66 cents 
for each dollar's worth of feed consumed. Another 
farmer received $79 a cow, a return of $1.95 for each 
dollar's worth of feed consumed. 

Allowing the skim milk, the calves, and the manure 
to offset the labor costs of the dairies, the one farmer 
disposed of his feed at a decided loss, the other at a 
handsome profit. These farmers lived only a mile 
apart, on the same road. The same creamery handled 
the milk from both farms and they received the same 
price per pound for butter fat. Why such a difference 
in results ? One man had put enough intelligence and 
painstaking care into his dairying to make it a success ; 
the other had not. 

I believe in dairying, but I would advise no man 
to go into the business unless he cares enough about 
success to be willing to put forth intelligent effort. I 
am at a loss to know what such a man had better do, 
but he certainly will not succeed in the dairy. Com- 
menting on the results of a cow census conducted un- 
der his direction and comprising 2,163 herds in 13 of 
our leading dairy states, Hon W. D. Hoard, the noted 
Wisconsin dairy authority, said: 'The one great and 
paramount conclusion overtopping all others is that a 
loss of profit in dairying is occasioned in nine cases 
out of 10 by lack of sound dairy intelligence on the 
part of the farmer who is behind the cow." 



CHAPTER IV 

Building the Herd by Breeding and 
Selection 

CHOOSING A BREED 

The man who desires to build up a good dairy 
herd should first select a breed. In my judgment this 
should always be distinctly a dairy breed. Too much 
emphasis cannot well be placed upon a matter of 
selecting a special-purpose dairy breed. For genera- 
tions, skillful men have carefully selected, bred, and 
handled certain breeds in an effort to improve and per- 
fect their milk-producing function. It has been proved 
beyond question that the breeds so developed will pro- 
duce milk much more economically than will a breed 
developed for another purpose or purposes. Why 
should not the dairy farmer of today profit by the skill 
of these breeders by introducing into his herd, as 
rapidly as he can, the inherited milk-giving function of 
dairy breeds? 

In selecting a breed, be guided first by personal 
preference, and second by the market for your product. 
In this country are four leading dairy breeds, Holstein, 
Guernsey, Jersey and Ayrshire. Any one of these in 
the hands of a competent dairyman will prove satis- 
factory. 

I am not advising the beginner to buy pure bred 
cows of any breed, nor the farmer who now has a herd 
of cows to sell them and buy pure breds. Breeding and 
selling pure-bred dairy cattle is a business by itself. 
For the ordinary farm dairy the high-grade cow is 
nearly as liberal a producer as the pure bred. 

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BUILDING THE HERD BY BREEDING AND SELECTION 13 

There are no more pure-bred dairy cows in the 
country than needed to supply the demand from breed- 
ers. There are, however, enough pure-bred bulls that 
by a reasonable outlay of time or money the use of 
one may be secured for nearly every dairy herd. 

Select a breed and stick to it. Use in your herd 
only pure-bred bulls of that breed. 

The improvement made by several years of wise 
breeding has often been nullified by a mistaken notion 
that some valuable quality could be introduced by us- 
ing a bull of some other breed. For instance, men have 
used a Jersey bull upon high-grade Holstein cows, hop- 
ing that the heifers from such mating would produce 
the large quantity of milk characteristic of the Hol- 
stein, and containing the high fat content of the Jersey. 
Occasionally a good cow results from such breeding, 
but not often. More often the result is cows produc- 
ing a small quantity of poor milk. When the first cross 
does bring a good individual producer her heifers are 
seldom her equal. 

Cross breeding for meat production is often suc- 
cessfully practiced. It is well understood that such 
an animal should never be kept for breeding purposes. 
Efforts to incorporate in one animal the good qualities 
of all breeds by a mixture of the blood of those breeds 
have always been disappointing. Retain the heifer 
calves from your best cows, and if you have been wise 
in the selection of a bull your herd will improve from 
year to year. 

SELECTING A SIRE 

It has been said that the bull is half the herd. In 
the improvement of a grade herd it is safe to count 
upon the good bull as more than half the herd. The 



14 MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 

rate of improvement very largely depends upon the wis- 
dom exercised in the selection of the herd sire. 

Breeding, individuality and prepotency are the 
three major considerations that should govern in the 
selection of the herd bull. The first great law of breed- 
ing is that like begets like, or the likeness of an ances- 
tor. When possible to make a personal examination 
of the dam of the bull you think of buying or using, 
do not neglect the opportunity. His daughters will 
probably be like her. Note her form, her indicated 
strength, constitution, and capacity. Note the shape 
and texture of her udder, size and placement of teats, 
shape and size of her milk veins and milk wells. As- 
certain, if possible, her actual performance at the pail 
both as to quantity and quality. After this learn what 
you can about his sire, and then his granddams. 

When personal inspection of ancestors is out of 
the question judgment as to breeding will have to be 
based upon the animal himself and the producing rec- 
ord of his ancestors. 

INDICATIONS OF MERIT 

Indications of individual excellency and prepo- 
tency are so interlinked that they may be well consid- 
ered together. First the bull should be distinctly mas- 
culine in appearance. He should be strong and of good 
constitution, as indicated by a large, bright, active but 
not restless eye ; by a large heart girth, providing space 
for a large, strong heart, and capacious lungs. He 
should be active in movement, not sluggish. 

Good dairy animals must be able to digest and 
assimilate a large amount of food. Ability to do this 
is indicated by a strong broad muzzle, well-muscled 
jaws, long, well-sprung ribs, fine, soft hair, and elastic 
skin. Dairy temperament in the bull is further in- 



BUILDING THE HERD BY BREEDING AND SELECTION 15 

dicated by a large prominent spine and well-developed 
rudimentaries. 

A sire is said to be prepotent when he is able in a 
marked degree to transmit his qualities and tempera- 
ment to his offspring. Hence, prepotency is one of the 
most desirable attributes of a good dairy bull. This 
quality can be fully demonstrated only when his 
daughters come to producing. Prepotency is usually 
found in a sire of strong individuality and is indicated 
by masculinity, strength, and vigor. 

BREED TO MATURE BULLS 

An unprofitable practice, not only of dairy farm- 
ers but of breeders, is to buy a young bull, put him in 
service as soon as he is old enough, use him a year or 
two and then sell him to shipper or butcher. Many 
dairy bulls that might have been of untold value to 
their owners and to a community have gone to the 
block before they .had an opportunity to demonstrate 
their worth. More care should be used in selecting 
sires, and when once put in service they should be kept 
until their get demonstrates their ability. If their 
daughters show marked merit the bulls should be kept 
in service to a good old age. 

There is a popular belief that dairy bulls become 
cross as they grow old and are dangerous to handle. 
This is partially true, but bulls become ugly largely 
through abuse, improper handling and lack of exercise. 
As long as the practice of retiring mature bulls in 
favor of young, untried ones continues, our dairy herds 
will not show the improvement they should. 

Inbreeding should be practiced only to a very lim- 
ited extent. Dairymen must introduce new bulls into 
their herd every two or three years. However, ma- 
ture bulls may be purchased or exchanged and thereby 
good bulls kept in service. 



16 



MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 



GOOD BULL PROFIT TO COMMUNITY 

I have observed that in communities where some 
farmer keeps a good dairy bull, his neighbors often 
fail to improve the opportunity of securing his services. 
Tnis is a flagrantly shortsighted policy. Perhaps no 
better proof of this can be offered than that contained 
in Bulletin 164 of the federal department of agricul- 
ture, which contains a summary of the cow census 
taken under the direction of Hon W. D. Hoard. This 
census covered the operations of 2,163 herds contain- 
ing 28,487 cows and located in 13 different states. I 
will give here the records bearing upon the above point 
of the first five localities canvassed, which are fairly 
representative of the whole. 

DAIRY TYPE MAKES THE MONEY 



Locality- 


No. 
of herds 


Type of herd 


Annual 

profit per 

cow 


Jefferson County, Wis. 
Jefferson County, Wis. 


76 
24 


Dairy 

Dual purpose 


$17.53 
6.67 


Five Iowa Counties 
Five Iowa Counties 


17 
83 


Dairy 

Dual piirpose 


20.43 
.54 


Five Ohio Counties 
Five Ohio Counties 


39 

20 


Dairy 

Dual purpose 


23.80 
8.56 


Delaware and Otsego 
Counties, N. Y. 


40 
50 


Dairy 

Mixed Breeding 


8.93 
3.43 Loss 


Susquehanna Co., Pa. 
vSusquehanna Co., Pa. 


15 
21 


Dairy 
Not Dairy 


20.85 
1.70 



These tables show at a glance the superior value 
of cows of dairy breeding. A summary of all the herds 
canvassed shows that cows of dairy type pay their own- 
ers $1.51 for each dollar's worth of feed consumed, in 



BUILDING THE HERD BY BREEDING AND SELECTION 17 

contrast to the $1.06 returned by cows lacking in dairy 
type. 

In the census as a whole, cows of good dairy type 
showed an annual profit more than eight times greater 
than the cows lacking dairy type. This shows that 
farmers who have good cows get as much profit from 
their herds in one year as those with poor cows receive 
in eight years. In other words, good cows as compared 
with poor ones multiplied the value of the time their 
owner put into dairying by eight. 

SECURING GOOD DAIRY BULL 



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When there is no good 
bull of your favorite breed 
within driving distance, 
some sort of arrangement 
should be made to get one. 
Individual ownership, joint 
ownership by a few under 
private agreement and a 
bull association, are three 
available plans for securing 
one. The advantages of 
individual ownership are 
apparent. Where this seems 
out of the question a few 
neighbors can join together 
and purchase one. Many 
communities have made 

great strides in dairy improvement by organizing bull 
associations. Plans and by-laws for such an associa- 
tion may be obtained by writing the dairy division of 
the department of agriculture, Washington, D. C. 




Fig. 3 — Result of Cen- 
sus OF 28487 Cows IN 2163 
Different Herds. 



CHAPTER V 

Improvement by Selection and 
Elimination 

Every man who keeps a herd of cows for dairy 
purposes, be the herd small or large, should remember 
that the value of the time he devotes to his herd is 
very largely determined by the dairy excellence of his 
cows. This, in other words, determines the volume of 
his profit or loss. 

Many men have invested in dairy cows and dairy 
equipment and are putting much time into growing 
feed, feeding, milking and caring for their herd, but 
have not invested in enough dairy knowledge to enable 
them to get a profit, or as large a profit as they should, 
from the business. 

Others who have the knowledge seem not to real- 
ize the necessity for using it. Every owner of dairy 
cows should adopt some method of determining the 
producing capacity of each cow and then should keep 
in the herd only those which return a fair profit. 

KEEP GOOD COWS 

Hundreds of times at institutes and dairy meetings 
I have been asked, "What kind of cows shall we keep?" 
I have always answered, "Good coivs." Some cows 
have the natural ability profitably to convert feed into 
milk. Others have not that ability, and no matter how 
judiciously fed and cared for will never make profitable 
dairy cows. There is usually not a wide difference in 
the profitable butter fat producing ability of the best 
cows in the leading dairy breeds, but there is a very 

18 



IMPROVEMENT BY SELECTION AND ELIMINATION 19 

wide difference between the best and poorest individ- 
uals in a herd of any breed. 

At the Louisiana Purchase Exposition at St Louis 
a breed test was conducted based upon economy of 
production. The best Jersey showed something over 
$1 more profit on the feed consumed than the best Hol- 
stein, but there was over $24 difference between the 
best and poorest Jersey in the test. In other tests cows 
from other breeds have won highest honors, but the 
results of all tests prove that individual merit wins 
rather than breed excellence. 

THREE KINDS OF COWS 

We might divide the cows kept at present by the 
farmers and dairymen of this country into three classes. 
One kind takes our feed, masticates, digests and assim- 
ilates it, and because of temperament, inherited ten- 
dency, predisposition, or the law of her nature converts 
a large part of it into milk. This cow is a dairy cow. 
It is this kind that the farmer should get and keep for 
she will do him good and not evil all the days of her 
life. 

Another kind consumes feed, and because of her 
temperament, inherited tendency, or the law of her 
nature, converts a large part of it into flesh. She is 
a beef cow, and if her owner is looking for dairy profit 
he should make beef of her just as soon as he can. 
To be sure, she will give some milk, perhaps a good 
flow for a time after freshening. Her instinct of ma- 
ternity prompts her to nurture her offspring, but if this 
cow is fed generously as a dairy cow should be, instead 
of giving a continuous heavy flow of milk for a long 
period she will shrink in milk and gain in flesh. 

Still another kind consumes feed and gives no 
return of any kind for it. She seems neither to con- 



20 



MAKING THE DAIRY' PAY 



vert it into milk nor flesh. She is, of course, of 
no value as a cow and should be disposed of at once. 
It would be interesting to ask the owner of each herd 
in this country how many of the two latter kinds of 
cows he has in his herd. Comparatively few would 
be able to answer. Few seem to have taken any special 

interest in the matter. 
It is surprising that 
this should be true 
when success or fail- 
ure so largely depends 
upon this factor. Dur- 
ing the last few years 
much light has been 
thrown on the matter 
of production by dairy- 
men who have kept a 
record of their herds 
and by cow-testing as- 
sociations. I have be- 
fore me many of these 
records. 

Manifestly it 



$ 56.1 2 

PROFIT 

FROM 

BEST 

COW IN 

A 

CERTAIN 

HERD 



#16.89 

LOSS FROM 
POOREST 
COW I N 

SAME HERD 



Fig. 4 — Showing of Two Cows 
in Same Herd. 



is 

unfair to compare the cows of one herd with 
those of another, or those of one locality with 
those of another, because conditions and local 
prices vary so widely. It is, however, fair to com- 
pare cows in the same herd that have the same treat- 
ment, practically the same feed and the same market 
value per unit of product. 



HERD RECORDS FIND THE PROFIT 



The poorest cow in one herd shows a loss of 
$16.89, the best cow a profit of $56.12. In a herd of 
30, comparing only mature cows, the poorest lacked 



IMPROVEMENT BY SELECTION AND ELIMINATION 21 



#66.80 
PROFIT 
FROM 
ANOTHER 
COW OF 
5AME 
HERD 



$4.71 of paying for her feed for the year. The best 
cow paid for her feed and yielded a profit of $42.47. 
In another herd, one cow made a profit of $11.37, and 
another $66.80. While both made a profit, one made 
nearly six times as much as the other. 

In a Nebraska cow-testing association the best cow 
in a certain herd gave 12,959 pounds milk testing 3.46% 
fat, and producing 448 pounds butter fat. Another 
cow in the same herd 
gave 1,797 pounds of 
milk testing 2.82%, pro- 
ducing 50 pounds butter 
fat. From the first cow 
the owner made a profit 
of $123.58, and from the 
second he sustained a 
loss of $13.73. 

Thousands of other 
records show in just as 
marked a degree the 
great difference in the 
ability of cows to pro- 
duce at a profit. There 
are but few herds of 
cows that do not show a 
similar variation when 
tested for a year, unless 
they are herds that have 
been tested and the poor, ' 
unprofitable cows, and FlG - 5— One Cow Made Six 
those showing low pro- Q T lf R AS MuCH Profit as the 
ducing power eliminated. 

_ An observant dairyman is, of course, able to detect 
a difference between a very profitable and an extremely 
unprofitable cow. Few of those, however, who do not 
test or keep records can at the end of the year tell 



&II.37 

PROFIT 
FROM ONE 

COW IN 
CERTAIN 

HERD 



22 MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 

whether a certain cow has given 5,000 or 6,500 pounds 
of milk and w r hether that milk tested 3% or 4%. Such 
a difference may easily determine whether a cow is 
profitable or unprofitable. 

It is my opinion, based upon observations of 
thousands of herds kept for dairy purposes, and from 
a vast amount of reliable data, that were the poorest 
40% of the cows now kept in farm dairies disposed of, 
the remaining 60% would produce a much greater ag- 





The area in the circles represents the products of the best ten 
and poorest ten cows in Wisconsin dairy competition. 

gregate profit than is now obtained. From data at hand 
bearing upon this point let me give the figures from 
one herd where an accurate record has been kept for 
two years. There were 26 cows in the herd the first 
year. The whole milk was sold at a fair price, and 
these cows showed an average profit of $22.93. Even 
at this average some of the cows were unprofitable. 
Nine of the poorest were sold and the remaining 17, 
their milk selling at the same price per gallon, made an 
average profit of $55.74. The owner of this herd re- 
ceived $351.40 more profit from his 17 best cows in a 
year than he received from his original 26 cows the 



IMPROVEMENT BY SELECTION AND ELIMINATION 23 

year before. He had fed and milked nine fewer cows, 
with the attendant saving of time and energy. 

It would seem that when the dairy farmers of this 
country are assured that by keeping fewer but better 
cows, and doing less work they can make more profit, 
they would gladly do so. On 85% of the dairy farms 
of this country the adoption of an accurate method of 
identifying and eliminating the poorest cows will as- 
suredly bring such results. 

Simply wanting better results is not enough. 
Wishing alone never will accomplish anything. Hav- 
ing the way pointed out will never get the dairy farmer 
anywhere unless he follows the way. Many dairy 
farmers who milk their own cows have told me that 
they know all about their cows and do not need to 
adopt new and accurate methods for improvement. A 
few such farmers have been induced to join a cow- 
testing association or to test and keep records of their 
cows. As a rule they have been very much surprised 
at the records. Not infrequently the cow they had con- 
sidered the best has proved of little value, while others 
thought to be only medium have proved to be their 
best. Since it is profit we work for, does it not seem 
logical to first find where we get our profits and then 
try to increase them ? 

PICKING OUT THE PAYERS 

It is not enough to know that our herd pays a 
profit. We must know that each cow is a profit-pro- 
ducing animal. Why keep a cow unless she makes 
money ? No man should be content to stop even when 
each cow pays a profit, but should so breed and select 
as to constantly improve his herd. 

Some dairymen have many fads and fancies, but 
the hard-headed practical business farmer wants to 
know, and should know, the value of the feed each 



24 



MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 




LBS.MILK 
IN ONE 
YEAR 



FROM POOREST 
COW IN CERTAIN 
NEBRASKA HERD 

LOSS # 1 3.73 




Fig. 6 — Profit and Loss from Cows of Same Herd 



IMPROVEMENT BY SELECTION AND ELIMINATION 25 




!l IMPROVED CIRCULAR 
SPRING BALANCE ' 

TO WEIGH 301b- 
■■.', BY..CUNCES 



cow consumes and what she returns for it. His cows 
furnish a market for his feed right on his farm; they 
are a good or a bad business proposition just in pro- 
portion to the excellence of the market they afford. 
I have talked with many dairy farmers who seem to 
think it would require too much time and effort to as- 
certain the value of the feed eaten by 
each cow and the value of the prod- 
uct she returns. This is not true. 

To be sure, considerable time 
and effort is required by the experi- 
menter, who must ascertain exact val- 
ues, and therefore must weigh all 
feed that the cow receives and weigh 
and test each milking. Such exact 
work is not required on the part of 
the dairy farmer, who needs only to 
know exact enough values for practi- 
cal results. 

If a dairy farmer observes the 
following instructions in his prac- 
tice, he will have sufficient knowl- 
edge for practical results. The only 
extra equipment necessary is a 
spring balance scale and a hand 
tester. The scales cost $1 and the 
tester about $5. 

FINDING THE VALUE OF FEED 

In winter feeding weigh the 
nay ted to individual cows two or ful Dairying Be- 
three times. The amount fed from GINS WITH Using 
day to day will vary a little, but not MlLK ScALES ' 
enough to be material. Likewise weigh the silage and 
other roughage fed. A few weighings during winter 
will suffice. Feed grain from a small measure and 




26 



MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 



MILK RECORD wmtfowoiMi. 



NAHt AND NUn&ER OF ANIMAL 












































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Fig. 8 — Convenient Form for Keeping Daily Milk Record 



weigh that measure of grain, or of the different grains 

fed, a few times, and use these weights as an average. 

It is well to mark above the stanchion of each cow 

the number of measures of grain she is to have. In 



IMPROVEMENT BY SELECTION AND ELIMINATION 27 

this way it is easy to ascertain the value of the daily 
ration. Weighing is done only as often as the ration 
is changed. 

The value of summer pastures must be estimated. 
The value of any supplementary feed may be deter- 
mined as in winter feeding. This is certainly not an 
arduous task. 

VALUE OF THE PRODUCT 

To determine conveniently the value of the prod- 
uct, enough milk pails should be secured of the same 
weight to accommodate each milker. The movable 
hand on the dial of the scale should be moved back- 
ward so that when the empty pail is hung on the scale, 
the hand will be at zero. Have a milk sheet arranged 
convenient to the scale. These milk sheets may be 
procured from any dairy supply house, or heavy paper 
can be so ruled as to provide a space for each day in 
the month. These spaces should be wide enough to 
allow placing the weight of the morning milking above 
and the evening milking below. The name or number 
of each cow is placed at the left. 

I firmly believe that it pays from every viewpoint 
to weigh every milking. Weighing one day a week, 
or once each 10 days and multiplying these weights by 
seven or 10. as the case may be, will give quite accurate 
results. There is no question, however, that milkers 
take more interest in their work, and do it more thor- 
oughly when a record is made of each milking. This 
may not be true of all milkers, but I have noted that 
even the owners of herds detect more quickly varia- 
tions in the milk flow, and are more likely to remedy 
the abuses in feeding and care that may cause such 
variations. 

It requires but a short time at the end of each 



28 



MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 



month to total these sheets and at the end of each year 
to total the monthly yields. If one is selling whole 
milk regardless of the test, the difference between the 
value of the feed consumed by each cow and the 
value of her milk tells the story of her efficiency as a 
market for her owner's feed. 




Fig. 9 — A Babcock Milk Testing Outfit 

If the milk is sold on its test, or the fat is made 
into butter either at the creamery or on the farm, an- 
other element enters into determining values. 



USE THE BABCOCK TESTER 

Testing milk with a Babcock tester is not a diffi- 
cult operation. Almost any one after a little practice 
can use a tester, and with reasonable care secure quite 
accurate results. When there is a creamery or a cream- 
testing station in the neighborhood, the farmer can 
usually get milk samples tested at very small cost. 




IMPROVEMENT BY SELECTION AND ELIMINATION 29 

When there is no such place near it is necessary for the 

dairy farmer to buy a tester or for a few neighboring 

farmers to club together and buy one, if they are to test 

the milk from their cows. 

They are so inexpensive that 

any dairy farmer can afford to 

own one. Full directions for 

operating come with the 

machine. 

Tests should be made 
each month, or at most each 
second month. In taking a A 1^/^°™ 
sample for testing an equal 

amount of milk should be taken from the morning and 
the evening milkings, as it has been found that the two 
milkings often vary in fat content. 

Mix the milk thoroughly before the sample is 
taken. This is best done by pouring from one vessel 
to another. If the milk is so poured three times, it will 
be thoroughly mixed unless it has set until the cream 
is quite fully separated. A half-pint of milk, or even 
less, is sufficient for the sample. 

Before filling the pipette from this sample see that 
it is thoroughly mixed and that no cream adheres to 
the sides of the vessel. The number of pounds milk 
given during the period between tests multiplied by 
the test gives the yield of fat for that period. 

Normal cows vary -somewhat in their yield from 
year to year, but if a cow is in good condition and her 
yield does not show a fair profit, she should be dis- 
posed of at once, especially if she shows a tendency to 
put on flesh. 

COW-TESTING ASSOCIATIONS 

Individual farmers can test their herds, but they 
usually don't. Few dairy farmers will or do undertake 



30 



MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 



to test their herds although they may fully realize the 
value of so doing; furthermore, those who start the 
work do not always keep it up as they should. These 
facts lead me to strongly recommend that in every sec- 
tion where there are enough cows the farmers organize 
a cow-testing association. 




Fig. 11 — The Tester at Work 
Co-operative testing gives accurate results cheaply. 

Cow-testing associations were introduced into this 
country by Mr Helmer Rabild, now with the depart- 
ment of agriculture at Washington. The first associa- 
tion was organized in Michigan in 1905. At the close 
of 1912 there were 118 of these associations in the 
United States. 

The plan is to hire a man to put in all or part of 
his time testing the cows belonging to the members of 
the association. The tester visits the farm of each 
member once a month, weighs the feed given each cow 
for the one day and computes its value, weighs and 
tests her milk for the one day, and computes its value. 



IMPROVEMENT BY SELECTION AND ELIMINATION 31 



This one-day record is taken as the average for the 
month. 

At the end of the year the tester furnishes the 
owner of the herd a complete record of each cow. A 
glance at this sheet shows the value of the feed con- 
sumed by the cow for the year, the pounds of milk she 
gave, its test, the pounds of butter fat it contained, the 
value of this fat, what it cost to produce a pound but- 
ter fat with this cow, the cost per 100 pounds milk, 
how much she paid for each dollar's worth of feed 
eaten, and the net profit or loss she made for her owner. 

This sheet shows the farmer just what he ought 
to know about each of his cows. The ordinary rule in 
these associations is for each member to pay $1 per cow 
tested, board and lodge the tester while he is testing 
the herd, and transport him to the home of the next 
member. 

The results that should be directly credited to 
these associations abundantly prove the wisdom of Mr 
Rabild and those associated with him. As proof, con- 
sider the following summary of results obtained in the 
first four years' work of a Michigan cow-testing asso- 
ciation : 





FOUR YEARS OF TESTING 








£8 


Average 

pounds 

milk 


Average 

pounds 

fat 


Average 
value of 
fat'per lb. 


d pj 
> o 


Average 
cost of 
feed 


W 
feed 


First year 
Fourth year 


239 

272_ 


5,336 
6,170 


215.0 
264.5 


23.3 
cents 

31.2 

cents 


$50.27 
$82.43 


$29.28 
$41.99 


$20.99 
$40.44 



During these four years the value of the fat per 
pound increased 34%, but the value of feed shows 43% 
increase. The higher value of feed was due partly to 



32 MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 

a rise in prices and partly to the fact that a heavier 
grain ration was fed. The remarkable showing, con- 
sidering the number of cows and the 26 herds in the 
association, was in net profits, which nearly doubled. 

When this association was organized, many farm- 
ers questioned whether they could afford to pay $1 per 
cow to have their herds tested. The results fully prove 
that they could not afford not to. Communities wish- 
ing to organize such an association can receive assist- 
ance by writing to the dairy division of the department 
of agriculture at Washington, D. C. The by-laws used 
by several successful associations are printed on pages 
80 to 83. 

CONFORMATION AS SELECTION GUIDE 

It has long been recognized that certain functional 
capacity in animals is usually recognizable by outward 
indications. Thus cows with highly developed milk- 
giving functions usually indicate such functional capac- 
ity by their form, conformation, or type. 

The feeder selects an animal with a broad back, 
short limbs, and a compact, closely ribbed body, be- 
cause he has learned that that conformation of body, 
or that type of animal, usually has the ability to lay 
on flesh quickly, economically, and when fat sells well. 

Following the same principle, the wise dairyman 
selects cows that indicate by their type or conformation 
that they have the capacity to produce milk econom- 
ically. Type is but an indication of function, and 
while the external indications may be right the internal 
machinery that does the work may not be operating 
to advantage. 

We have all seen horses with short backs, long 
underlines, sloping shoulders, and other indications of 
speed, that were not able to trot a mile even in four 
minutes. Such would be an absolute failure in a race, 



IMPROVEMENT BY SELECTION AND ELIMINATION 33 

despite their conformation. We likewise find some cows 
possessing dairy type that when it comes to the test of 
efficiency prove absolute failures. 

Despite the fact that some horses of the speed 
type are failures as trotters, an intelligent man who 
wished to develop a racing stable would not think of 
buying draft horses, from which to develop trotters. 
He knows that ability to go fast is not usually asso- 
ciated with that type. 

Guided by like intelligence, the man starting a 
dairy herd or adding to the dairy he already has will 
select cows of dairy type. Experience teaches that it 
is among cows of that type that profitable producers 
are usually found. 

TRUE DAIRY TYPE 

In examining a cow to determine type, commence 
at the head. This should be broad between the eyes, a 
little dished, spare rather than fleshy, and should 
terminate in a broad strong muzzle. The eyes should 
be full and bright, and the head strongly coupled to the 
neck. The neck should be thin and of fair length, 
the spine large and prominent and the vertebrae not 
too close together. 

Breadth between the eyes, a strong neck coupling, 
and a large spine indicate a strong nerve system, which 
is necessary for large dairy production. Large nerve 
trunks should go from the spine to the vital organs. 
Vertebrae set well apart indicate that such is the case. 

The barrel should be deep and wide, and the ribs 
sloping from the spine should be well sprung. The 
large, deep, broad barrel provides large thoracic and 
abdominal capacity, or a large factory space for the 
organs upon which falls the work of milk production. 
A restricted thorax, or, as it is commonly called, heart 
girth, indicates lack of constitution and strength. 



34 MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 

The rump should carry well up to the tail head. 
The hips should be broad and the pin bones wide apart. 
This gives pelvic capacity, and sufficient room between 
the hind legs for a large udder. 

The udder should have a large place in determin- 
ing the indicated value of a dairy cow. It should be 
large, joined to the body far out in front, and extend- 
ing well up behind. Its tissue should be glandular and 
elastic, so that when milked out it will appear empty. 
The teats should be a fair distance apart, one at nearly 
the center of each quarter of the udder, and of fair 
size. 

Large veins covering the outer walls of the udder, 
and large, tortuous, branching veins extending from 
the udder well forward and entering the abdomen 
through large milk wells, indicate that plenty of blood 
is being carried to the udder from which milk may be 
elaborated. 

A cow having all the above excellent points will 
not be able to do good dairy work unless she is in a 
healthy and vigorous condition. General condition and 
vigor are indicated by a bright, clear eye, soft, elastic 
skin, fine, velvety hair, and a good carriage. A cow 
possessing this dairy type to a marked degree, if in 
good condition, seldom fails to be a good producer. It 
is not often that we find cows for sale that closely ap- 
proach the ideal dairy type. 

While these points of excellence should be known 
and considered in purchasing cows, the cows should be 
tested nevertheless. Their owner may then depend 
upon facts rather than probabilities. 



CHAPTER VI 
Feeding Dairy Qows for Profit 

The profitable feeding of dairy cows involves the 
use of great judgment and care. Pigs and steers are 
kept on the farm for only a comparatively short time, 
when they are sold and slaughtered. Overtaxing their 
digestive powers, for instance, is not as serious as with 
a cow that is to go on doing work for many years. 

The digestive power of the cow is much more 
heavily taxed than that of the flesh-forming animal, 
for the good cow in a year produces in her milk a 
greater amount of nutrients than does the steer in the 
production of beef. Many cows produce each year for 
a term of years solids in their milk equal to their own 
body weight. The cow must be supplied in her feed 
with material for her own growth, for sustaining body 
temperature, and supplying the energy for the vast 
amount of work she performs. Besides this, she must 
be supplied with material from which to manufacture 
milk, and nourish her unborn young. 

THE DANGER POINT IN FEEDING 

I am satisfied that the greatest mistake made by 
dairymen in feeding their cows is in not feeding 
enough. Many cows that are underfed receive all the 
feed they will eat, but there is a decided difference be- 
tween having a cow fed and just filled up. A cow may 
be given all the material she can consume, but if from 
that material she cannot digest a proper supply of 
nutrients, she is underfed. Cows cannot consume 
enough hay, corn stover and straw to do good dairy 
work. It requires nearly if not all the nutrients that 

35 



36 MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 

can be digested from straw to furnish enough energy 
to digest it, so straw may be considered as simply a filler 
and nothing more. 

BRICKS WITHOUT STRAW 

Many good men who read their Bible every Sun- 
day, and perhaps every day, have read the story of 
Pharaoh and the children of Israel ; how Pharaoh with- 
held from the Israelites their allotment of straw with 
which to make bricks, yet demanded that they should 
make their usual number of bricks. These good men 
have condemned Pharaoh as a tyrant because he de- 
manded of his servants that they accomplish the im- 
possible. These same men may have condemned their 
cows for not making them a profit, while demanding 
of them practically what Pharaoh demanded of the 
children of Israel — that they make bricks without 
straw ; in other words, that they make a large quantity 
of milk without the material from which to make it. 

A MAINTENANCE RATION 

It requires considerable feed to simply run a cow's 
machinery for a year, just to keep her a cow, just to 
maintain her body weight and temperature, furnish en- 
ergy, keep her vital functions going and move her about. 
The amount of feed required daily to maintain a cow 
at a uniform weight, when she is not producing, is 
termed a maintenance ration. This ration varies 
slightly for cows of the same weight, and for differ- 
ent seasons of the year. It requires from seven to nine 
pounds digestible nutrients to maintain a 1,000-pound 
cow for a day. About 20 pounds corn silage, six 
pounds hay, and from three to four pounds grain is 
required to furnish these nutrients. A considerable 



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FEEDING DAIRY COWS FOR PROFIT 



37 



outlay of feed is thus required from day to day to 
maintain our milk-making machines, even though those 
machines are idle. 

The practical farmer knows that if he keeps a cow 
weighing from 1,000 to 1,500 pounds for a year, al- 
though she gives no milk, she will cost him in feed 
from $25 to $50, depending upon locality and price of 
feed. At the end of the year he has only the same cow. 



Foir Ration 
frat/on of Maintenance. 



Used for MUK product /on 



ThreeQuarters Ration 
Avat/abl9for 
Nation of Maintenance, Mi/H Production 



HAir Ration 
f?a t/on of Ma /ntenance. 



Fig. 12 — No Money in Scant Feeding 



Manifestly, then, the maintenance ration of the cow, 
as far as the dairyman or dairy profit is concerned, is 
a liability. 

Were- the dairy cow an inanimate machine, she 
would stop producing when furnished only enough 
energy to run her machinery. The real science of 
profitable dairy feeding would be then more quickly 
and forcefully understood and appreciated. Because 
she is an animate machine, however, and because her 
instinct prompts her to nourish her young, the cow 
goes on producing milk though receiving only a main- 
tenance ration, or even less. Of course, she cannot 
do this indefinitely, but for some time, in response to 



38 



MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 



hiOk 



BUTTCR TAT 

Liiiimuiwai. 



WfflM 2IS 4 TLB3 



Kstsib* 



EMM -«?84LB5 



Beas^ues. 



VALUE OP PR0DUGT5 



her instinct, she will produce milk by drawing on the 

material of her body and using stored energy to do 

the work. 

Obviously, the dairyman gains but little from this. 

Although the cow 
has produced milk, 
she has depreciated 
in value and the 
nutrients she drew 
from her body must 
be replaced before 
she regains her 
former value. If 
the above practice 
is carried too far, 
she will probably 
never regain her 
former efficiency be- 
cause of the misuse 
of her machinery. 
Many first-class 

dairy cows have been practically ruined by this sort 

of abuse. 



|a.383{84 



//-'////] fl 68:84 

cost or rceo 

■MBHtt'-^i"*) 



ZZ3 V* a '"3 2 



NCTBCTURN3 



*I5^«40 



23 $ 19.9^ 

BEST COW 



Poorest cow O 



Fig. 13 — Returns from Highest 
and Lowest Producing Cows, Wis- 
consin Cow Competition. 



A PROFIT-PRODUCING RATION 

Let us suppose, for the purpose of illustrating the 
principle of successful dairy feeding, that it requires 
$35 worth of feed a year to maintain an average cow, 
not producing. In taking these figures I am in no way 
attempting to estimate the cost. In some localities, 
with some cows, this figure is too high, while in other 
localities, with perhaps larger cows, it is too low. 
Whatever the maintenance cost may be, the principle 
involved is the same. 

Now let us suppose that the dairyman provides his 
cow with $45 worth of feed. It will require $35 worth 



FEEDING DAIRY COWS FOR PROFIT 39 

of this to run her machinery or to maintain her. This 
leaves $10 worth for that machine to convert into 
milk. It is really not quite that, for a small part of the 
extra feed must be used to supply the extra energy 
required to convert this feed into milk. From this 
extra $10 worth of feed suppose that the cow yields, 
in a year, $45 worth of milk. She has made this extra 
feed pay for itself and for her maintenance ration. 

Let us now suppose that this cow, instead of being 
given $45 worth of feed, is allowed $55 worth. Again 
it will require $35 worth to run her machinery. Now, 

Full Ration 

used for Used for 

Fatten of Maintenance a\hh Pr.oauctun Body Fa.t 



Ecpnomical Ration 

used for 
Pat/or? of Maintenance Mi/K Production 



Fig. 14 — Cows of Low Producing Power May Be Overfed 

however, she has $20 worth of extra feed to convert 
into milk. Again she will use a part of this to supply 
the extra energy required, but it ought not to require 
a larger proportion than was used in the first instance. 
If she was able to yield $45 worth of milk from $10 
worth of extra feed, why should she not yield as much 
again, or $90 worth of milk, from double the amount 
of feed, above cost of maintenance? 

If this proves true, she would in the first instance, 
just pay for her feed. In the second she would pay 
for her feed and show a profit of $35. She did not, in 
the second instance, consume double the amount of 
feed eaten in the first, but only twice as much above 
her maintenance ration. 



40 MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 

"But," you ask, "will this, in practical experience, 
prove true, and by again increasing the feed above 
maintenance requirements could we again increase the 
profits?" It will prove true in practice if the cow is 
fed and cared for as she should be, providing she is a 
good dairy coiv. It will hold true as feed is increased 
until we reach the full producing capacity of our cow. 

It must be understood that there is a vast differ- 
ence in cows. When it comes to dealing in absolute 
figures no two will work out the same. In consid- 
ering dairy cows of high producing capacity the kind 
and quality of feed, manner of feeding and the care 
given materially affect returns per feeding unit. 

The natural cow, under natural conditions, fresh- 
ened in spring, gave milk enough to supply her calf 
and went dry in autumn. Man, by his intelligence and 
cunning, has developed the cow until she now freshens 
at any season of the year, gives milk enough to sup- 
port her own and two or three other calves, and milks 
continuously for 11 months each year. By such de- 
velopment, he has made of her an artificial creature, 
in a sense, and she must be handled differently than 
her forebears were handled if she is to be kept up to 
her high standard. 

In my own dairy practice I have demonstrated be- 
yond question that up to the limit of the cow's capacity 
she will make a profit in proportion to the amount of 
digestible nutrients furnished above her maintenance 
requirements. 

PRINCIPLE OF PROFITABLE DAIRY FEEDING 

The principle of successful dairy feeding is em- 
bodied in the following rule : Furnish the cozv enough 
properly balanced digestible nutrients to enable her to 
run her milk-making machinery up to its full normal 



FEEDING DAIRY COWS FOR PROFIT 41 

capacity. Men who successfully handle other kinds of 
machinery recognize this principle. What man who 
has a threshing machine with a capacity of 1,000 bush- 
els of grain a day would think of restricting his efforts 
to 500 bushels? He knows that his machine will last 
just as long if run at its normal capacity, and will make 
him more profit. Although the majority of cow own- 
ers have not seemed to recognize it, this fact is equally 
true with milk-making machines. When feed is cheap 
and the market for dairy products especially good, a 
herd of cows may make a profit when under-fed ; but 
when feed is high, and dairy products low, cows can 
make a profit only when well fed. 

I have known men who actually study how to make 
their cows get along with less feed when they ought 
to be studying how to get them to consume more. 

OVERFEEDING 

Occasionally cows that are being fed to make phe- 
nomenal records are overfed to the extent of perma- 
nent injury. They are given a very heavy grain ration, 
often all the grain they can be induced to eat. This is 
not done with an idea of getting them to produce at 
full normal capacity, but away beyond normal capacity. 
Cows that are in perfect health and of naturally strong 
constitution may stand a strain of this kind without 
injury for some time. If 'the strain is too hard or 
continued too long, the health of the animals will be 
injured and the vital forces lowered. In ordinary dairy 
practice, this phase of overfeeding need not be seri- 
ously considered. 

Now and then is found a herd of cows kept for 
ordinary dairy purposes that are in a sense overfed. 
Such a herd might yield a larger net profit if less grain 
were fed. A ration made up of less expensive feed 
might be substituted, with equally good results. 



42 MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 

The most frequent cases of overfeeding are in 
herds where the cows are all fed practically the same 
amount of grain regardless of their individual capacity 
or the amount of milk they yield. No phase of suc- 
cessful dairy farming requires more care, closer obser- 
vation, and better judgment than in determining the 
amount and kind of feed each cow should have to en- 
able her to run her machinery up to normal capacity. 

Of two cows with much the same appearance, one, 
because of her superior inherent ability in the way of 
dairy temperament, may not be able to do her best on 
less than 15 pounds grain a day, while the other may 
not be able to handle more than half that amount to 
the best advantage. The amount of nutrients each cow 
can best handle must be determined by individual tests. 

After a cow has freshened, the judicious feeder 
will gradually increase her feed, especially the grain, 
and see that the per cent of protein in the feed in- 
creases as the milk flow increases. Results should be 
watched carefully, and the grain ration increased until 
the increase in milk no longer pays for the increased 
ration. When this is reached, drop back to the point 
where the increase did show a profit. You have gone 
beyond the point of greatest profit in the dairy ration 
when the cow ceases to give more milk and begins to 
lay on flesh. When a dairy cow gets fleshy, at least 
before the latter part of her lactation period, she is 
converting too much of her owner's feed into cheap 
cow beef. From a practical dairy standpoint she is 
being overfed. 

I am satisfied that where one herd of cows are 
overfed in the United States, 75 herds are underfed. 
Cows may be given more feed than they can consume 
and still he underfed if that feed does not furnish 
enough protein to enable them to produce the maximum 
flow of milk. 



FEEDING DAIRY COWS FOR PROFIT 43 

FEEDING DAIRY COWS 

Profitable dairy farming depends largely upon 
feeding a cow so she will do her best. To be so fed 
requires that she shall not only have enough digestible 
nutrients, but that they shall be of such kind and 
variety and so fed as to stimulate her appetite. I give 
here certain rules of feeding that I believe to be essen- 
tial for best results. Give the dairy cow a variety of 
palatable feeds. Feed regularly a balanced ration con- 
taining some succulent feed, and keep the mangers and 
surroundings clean. 

VARIETY IN DAIRY FEEDS 

Any animal will do better on a variety of feeds 
than on one or two. Different feeds contain the ele- 
ments of nutrition in different proportions. For in- 
stance, wheat bran has in its composition considerable 
mineral matter. Cottonseed meal has but little. Dif- 
ferent feeds, of course, taste and smell differently to 
the cow, and a change stimulates the appetite and aids 
digestion. 

If any one is inclined to think that variety is not 
a valuable attribute of an animal's ration, let him 
try living on meat and potatoes alone for a season. 
Clover and alfalfa hay, pea and oat hay, corn stover, 
corn silage, and sugar beets, mangels or carrots, with 
two or three different kinds of grain, furnish a fair 
variety, and if properly combined make a good ration. 

PALATABLE FEED A NECESSITY 

The longer I feed cows the more firmly I believe 
that there is no attribute of a dairy ration of greater 
practical value than palatability. A cow or any other 
animal will eat more feed that tastes good than of 
feed less palatable. Feed that the cow relishes she 



44 MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 

digests better. Feeds that taste good to an animal 
stimulate the nerves controlling the glands that secrete 
the digestive juices, aiding digestion. 

Chemists tell us that a corn crop converted into 
silage will not contain much more of nutrients than the 
same crop field cured. The practical dairyman knows, 
however, that his cows make a great deal more milk 
from the crop as silage than when field cured. Part 
of this difference is accounted for by the succulent 
nature of the silage, but I am satisfied that one of the 
greatest advantages of silage is its increased paya- 
bility. Any stockman who sees a herd of cows eating 
good silage will feel that he would like to have silage 
for his own cows. Nothing pleases a stockman better 
than to see his animals take hold of feed as though they 
enjoyed it. 

SECURING GOOD FEED 

Palatable cow feed, as a rule, does not happen ex- 
cept in the form of natural grass pasture, but rather 
comes from zvisdom and care in preparation. A blind 
man who knows anything about hay can judge quality 
of alfalfa and clover hay by smelling it. If it has the 
right aroma, he knows it must have been cut before it 
was too ripe and properly cured, for hay of high qual- 
ity cannot be secured in any other w&y. A cow may 
eat sour or partly spoiled silage if forced to, but she 
should not be compelled to do so. Good silage can 
be secured only from corn cut about the time it comes 
to maturity, and stored in an air-tight silo. Musty and 
moldy grain can be gotten rid of by forcing cows to 
eat it, but cows cannot be swindled into paying a good 
price for worthless feed. 

In actual farm practice, we are, of course, some- 
times unable to secure our cow feeds in as good con- 
dition as we would like. Sometimes a dairyman may 




N N 

o o 



FEEDING DAIRY COWS FOR PROFIT 45 

be forced to feed timothy hay and grains that are not 
first class. If this is the case, he should by no means 
condemn his cows if they do not pay a high profit. 

A BALANCED RATION 

Much has been said and written about a balanced 
ration. Some of it is understandable to the ordinary 
dairy farmer and some not. Science has done a great 
work in enabling us to know how to balance a ration. 
The reason for balancing a cow's ration after we know 
how is just a matter of plain, ordinary common sense. 
Balancing a cow's ration means no more nor less than 
furnishing her with just the material from which her 
milk is made, and her body and energy sustained, fur- 
nishing such materials in the proportion needed. 

Nature provides every cow with a formula for 
making milk, and as long as the cow remains normal 
she will produce milk after this formula. Suppose 
this formula for a certain cow calls for milk contain- 
ing 3.5% fat, 3.6% casein and albumen, 4.8% milk 
sugar, .7% ash, and 87.4% water. Suppose this cow 
is giving 50 pounds milk a day and weighs 1,200 
pounds. To supply the necessary material from which 
to make this milk and run her machinery, she must 
have each day about 3 pounds digestible protein, 18.25 
pounds digestible carbohydrates and .85 pound digesti- 
ble fat. 

To supply the required nutrients, feed 40 pounds 
corn silage, 10 pounds clover hay, 15 pounds corn 
stover, 1 pound oats, 3 pounds corn, 6 pounds dried 
brewers' grain, and 2 pounds linseed meal. 

Instead of feeding this ration, suppose we feed 5 
pounds more corn meal, only 3 pounds dried brewers' 
grain, and no linseed meal. By so doing we would 
lower the cost of our ration, by perhaps three cents, but 
with what ultimate result ? The ration substituted lacks 



46 MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 

half a pound of furnishing the digestible protein the 
cow must have to produce 50 pounds milk. It will fur- 
nish enough protein to maintain the cow and enable 
her to make 39 pounds milk, and her milk must shrink 
to this figure if we continue the latter ration. 

If milk is worth only one cent a pound, we have 
lost 11 cents worth of milk to save three cents worth 
of feed. The milk will probably be worth not less than 
\y 2 cents a pound, and in this case we lose \2>y 2 cents 
a day. We make 34% less profit on the feed con- 
sumed by our failure to give the cow enough protein. 

Protein is the highest priced element, and the one 
most likely to be lacking in a ration made up wholly 
or largely of home-grown material. Protein is the 
part of feeds that contains nitrogen. It is the element 
from which the cow must obtain the nitrogen she re- 
quires for the casein and albumen in her milk. 

All natural feeds contain protein, but only a few 
of our ordinary farm feeds contain as much as is 
required by the cow giving a good flow of milk. Hence 
if these ordinary home-grown feeds alone are fed to our 
cow and enough furnished to supply her with the pro- 
tein required for large production, she will be compelled 
to consume more of the other nutrients than she re- 
quires. This excess of nutrients will be largely wasted. 

Nearly all cow feeds contain enough ash for the 
cow's requirement. Carbohydrates are a class of nutri- 
ents rich in carbon. These with the fats, which are 
also rich in carbon, furnish the material from which 
she secures the fat and the sugar of her milk. 

When the ration contains just the amount of 
digestible protein the cow requires to maintain her and 
furnish material for the albumen and casein of the milk, 
and just the amount of carbohydrates and fat she re- 
quires for maintenance and for supplying material for 
the fat and sugar in her milk, the ration is balanced. 



FEEDING DAIRY COWS FOR PROFIT 47 

It should be readily apparent to every dairy farmer 
that such a ration is of greatest economy and profit. 
There may have been a time, when home grown feeds 
were very cheap, that the dairy farmer could better 
afford to waste some carbohydrates than to buy pro- 
tein to balance his ration. If that were ever true, it is 
not now in any section of the country with which I am 
acquainted. 

BALANCING A RATION 

It has been learned by those who have made long 
and exhaustive studies of the matter that a good cow 
on full milk requires for maintenance and milk flow 
from five to six times as much digestible carbohydrates 
and fat in her ration as digestible protein. This rela- 
tion between digestible protein and digestible carbohy- 
drates and fat in a ration is called its "nutritive ratio." 

It has been found that one part digestible fat is 
equal in feeding value to 2.4 parts digestible carbo- 
hydrates. So, having given the digestible nutrients in 
a ration, multiply the amount of fat by 2.4, add this to 
the carbohydrates, and divide the sum of the two by 
the amount of protein. The nutritive ratio of this 
ration will be as one is to the quotient. For example, 
a ration contains two pounds digestible protein, 11.5 
pounds digestible carbohydrates, and .5 pound digesti- 
ble fat. ^ .5X2.4=1.20+11.5=12.70—2=6.35. Nutri- 
tive ratio=l : 6.35. This computation shows that in 
the above ration there are practically 6.35 pounds car- 
bonaceous food to each pound protein. 

Before we can compute a balanced ration we must 
know the amounts of the different digestible nutrients 
in our feeds. To assist our readers in compounding 
their rations, a table is here inserted, showing such 
nutrients in the more common dairy feeds. These fig- 



48 



MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 



tires are taken from "Henry's Feeds and Feeding," the 
standard work on this subject. 

DIGESTIBLE NUTRIENTS IN DIFFERENT FEEDS 



Name of feed 



Dry- 
matter in 
100 lbs. 



Pounds digestible nutrients 
in 100 pounds 



Protein 



Carbohy- 
drates 



Fat 



Red clover hay 

Alfalfa hay 

Timothy hay, all analyses 

Oat hay 

Cowpea hay 

Fodder corn, field cured 
ears remaining on stalk. _ 

Corn stover 

Oat straw 

Wheat straw 

Corn silage 

Corn, dent 

Sweet corn, 

Oats 

Barley 

Corn and cob meal 

Canada field peas 

Wheat bran 

Wheat middlings (shorts) _ 

Buckwheat middlings 

Gluten meal 

Gluten feed 

Dried brewers' grains 

Linseed meal, old process _ 

Cottonseed meal 

Sugar beets 

Mangels 

Carrots 



84.7 


7.1 


37.8 


91.9 


10.5 


40.5 


86.8 


2.8 


42.4 


86.0 


4.7 


36.7 


89.5 


9.2 


39.3 


57.8 


2.5 


34.6 


59.5 


1.4 


31.2 


90.8 


1.3* 


39.5 


90.4 


0.8 


35.2 


26.4 


0.4 


14.2 


89.4 


7.8 


66.8 


91.2 


8.8 


63.7 


89.6 


8.8 


49.2 


89.2 


8.4 


65.3 


84.9 


4.4 


60.0 


85.0 


19.7 


49.3 


88.1 


11.9 


42.0 


88.8 


13.0 


45.7 


87.2 


22.7 


37.5 


90.5 


29.7 


42.5 


90.8 


21.3 


52.8 


91.3 


20.0 


32.2 


90.2 


30.2 


32.0 


93.0 


37.6 


21.4 


13.5 


1.3 


9.8 


9.1 


1.0 


5.5 


11.4 


0.8 


|7.7 



1.8 
0.9 
1.3 
1.7 
1.3 

1.2 
0.7 
0.8 
0.4 
0.7 
4.3 
7.0 
4.3 
1.6 
2.9 
0.4 
2.5 
4.5 
6.1 
6.1 
2.9 
6.0 
6.9 
9.6 
0.1 
0.2 
0.3 



PROFITABLE CROPS FOR DAIRY FEED 

Because of the large amount of first-class cow 
feed it produces per acre in nearly all sections of this 
country, corn will probably continue to be a large feed 
factor in most dairy sections. Corn is by far the best 
crop for silage, and a silo is almost indispensable on a 
dairy farm. The corn plant is high in carbohydrates 



FEEDING DAIRY COWS FOR PROFIT 



49 



and low in protein. The nutritive ratio of the whole 
plant, stalk and ear together, is about 1 to 14, and of 
the grain 1 to 9.7. After corn, clover hay is probably 
the most universal cow feed. This in itself is about 
properly balanced. Its nutritive ratio is 1 to 5.9. If 
the bulk of the ration is made up of the corn plant and 
clover hay some concentrated feed high in protein 
should be given to make up for the deficiency of that 
element in the corn plant. 

NARROW AND WIDE RATIONS 

Rations containing a relatively large proportion of 
protein are called narrow. Those containing a rela- 
tively large proportion of carbohydrates are called 
wide. Different experimenters have reached somewhat 
different conclusions as to the relative amounts of pro- 
tein and carbohydrates a dairy ration should contain 
for the most economical and efficient feeding of cows 
of different weights, and giving varying amounts of 
milk. The first standard generally accepted in this 
country was a German standard known as the Wolff- 
Lehmann. This standard called for quite a narrow 
ration. According to it the requirements of a 1,000- 
pound cow when giving certain amounts of milk are as 
follows : 



THE GERMAN FEEDING STANDARD 



When giving 11 lbs. milk 
When giving 16.6 lbs. milk 
When giving 22 lbs. milk 
When giving 27.5 lbs. milk 



Digestible Nutrients 






25.0 
27.0 
29.0 
32.0 



a 

'v 

o 
u 

a. 



1.6 
2.0 
2.5 
3.3 






10 
11.0 
13.0 
13.0 






0.3 
0.4 
0.5 
0.8 



Nutritive 
ratio 



1:6.7 
1:6.0 
1:5.7 
1:4.5 



50 



MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 



The conclusions reached by American investiga- 
tors seem generally to agree that a ration somewhat 
wider will prove as efficient and more economical. 
Prof T. L. Haecker of Minnesota, who has given much 
time and study to the matter of American dairy rations, 
gives us the amount of digestible nutrients required to 
produce a pound of milk of given test. The follow- 
ing table is for mature cows : 

HAECKER'S AMERICAN FEEDING STANDARD 



Maintenance requirements per 


Protein 


Carbohy- 


Fat 


100 pounds live weight 


0.07 lbs. 


drates 
0.7 lbs. 


0.01 lbs. 


For each 1 lb. milk testing 3 % add 


0.04 


19 


0.015 


1 " " 3.5% " 


0.042 


0.21 


0.016 


1 " "4 % " 


0.047 


0.23 


0.018 


« j « i< 45% ,< 


0.049 


0.26 


0.02 


1 " "5 % " 


0.051 


0.27 


0.021 


1 " " 5.5% " 


0.054 


0.29 


0.022 


1 " "6 % " 


0.057 


0.031 


0.024 



Knowing the weight of the cow, and the test of 
her milk, by referring to the above table and to the 
preceding table showing the digestible nutrients in our 
ordinary dairy feeds the farmer can compound a ration 
that should closely meet the requirements according 
to Prof Haecker. 

My own experience indicates a somewhat nar- 
rower ration than suggested by the above table as most 
profitable. It is safe to assert that dairy cows should 
not receive a wider ration than that prescribed by the 
Haecker standard, while often it will be of advantage 
to give more protein than the table calls for. 

RELATION OF GRAIN TO ROUGHAGE 

A ration should not only be balanced as to nutri- 
ents, but there should also be a certain balance between 



FEEDING DAIRY COWS FOR PROFIT 51 

the amounts of grain and roughage fed. This rela- 
tion differs with the capabilities of different cows, the 
kind of roughage fed and the yield of milk. All cows 
should have enough roughage to properly distend the 
abdomen, and with this enough grain to furnish the 
nutrients required. Perhaps a fair general average 
for cows in full milk would be to furnish three-fifths 
of the digestible nutrients in the roughage, and two- 
fifths in the grain. This ration will be varied by the 
judicious feeder to meet the individual requirements of 
his cows. 

SHALL WE GROW PROTEIN OR BUY IT ? 

As a general principle we should grow our feed. 
If, however, we are equipped to grow some cash crop, 
and our soil is especially fitted for it, it is often wise to 
grow it and then buy the needed protein feeds. In 
many sections the soil and climate are not adapted to 
growing grains rich in protein. If a dairy farmer can 
grow a crop the proceeds of which will buy more pro- 
tein than he could raise on the field, it is good busi- 
ness to do so. In some sections, Canada field peas or 
peas sown with oats can be grown successfully. If so, 
they make a very good protein feed. In other sections 
the cowpea and soy bean may be used. Either clover 
or alfalfa or both should be grown on every dairy farm. 
Good alfalfa hay is a wonderful dairy feed, and is des- 
tined to accomplish great things for the dairy farmer. 

PROTEIN IN PROFITABLE FORM 

Dairy farmers can usually procure protein most 
cheaply by purchasing the by-products of some indus- 
try. Such by-products as bran, middlings, gluten meal 
gluten feed, brewers' grains, linseed and cottonseed 
meal make splendid dairy feeds. By consulting the 
table on page 48 you will note that these by-products 



ZJ, MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 

are all relatively high in digestible protein. This is be- 
cause part of the carbonaceous material contained in 
the whole grain has been taken out in the manufactur- 
ing process. 

The relative values of these feeds as sources of 
protein alone are determined by the amount of digesti- 
ble protein they contain. By this rule cottonseed meal 
would be worth three times as much per ton as wheat 
bran, but there is a greater amount of digestible car- 
bohydrates in a ton of bran than in a ton of cottonseed 
meal, and this should be considered in determining 
values. The other by-products mentioned will be found 
more palatable than cottonseed meal. Cottonseed meal is 
a very heavy feed, and is quite constipating in its effects. 

I would by no means discourage the feeding of 
cottonseed meal, but would advise that it be fed in 
only moderate amounts, and in connection with silage, 
roots, or some other laxative feed. I have fed consid- 
erable cottonseed meal, and with good results, but have 
never made a practice of feeding more than three 
pounds a day. Judging by digestible protein alone, 
cottonseed meal would be worth about 16% more than 
linseed meal, but in actual practice linseed meal is often 
worth as much or more than cottonseed meal, pound 
for pound. This is because of its greater palatability 
and conditioning effects. 

Many proprietary dairy feeds are good, but they 
should be bought upon their analyses, or their digesti- 
ble protein content rather than for their name or be- 
cause of the high-sounding phrases used in advertising 
them. I refer here to strictly dairy feeds, not to medi- 
cated mixtures advertised as cure-alls. These are usu- 
ally sold for from five to 10 times their actual value, 
granted that they have a value. 

According to the table on page 48 one might con- 
clude that wheat middlings are of more value per unit 



FEEDING DAIRY COWS FOR PROFIT 53 

than wheat bran. In actual practice the reverse is usu- 
ally true. The glutens and brewers' grains are first- 
class dairy feeds and valuable in balancing dairy rations 
in about the proportion of digestible protein they con- 
tain. The table on page 48 gives the average digestible 
contents of these feeds, but individual samples vary 
considerably. It is therefore well to get a guaranteed 
analysis from the seller. 

WHEN TO FEED 

Feed the cows at about the same time each day. 
They are creatures of habit and will do better when 
encouraged to form good habits. Cows that are fed 
at certain regular hours learn to expect their feed then, 
and not until then. They will, as a rule, be found 
contentedly eating, or chewing their cuds, and there- 
by working to the advantage of their owners. Cows 
that are fed irregularly are always expecting or look- 
ing for something and instead of being contented are 
usually dissatisfied. This feeling never yet helped 
make a herd of dairy cows more profitable. 

SUCCULENT FEED 

A dairy farmer cannot afford to be without some 
sort of succulent feed for his cows. The natural plant 
juices are not only loosening in their effect upon the 
bowels, but something about them stimulates digestion 
and assimilation. Every farmer has doubtless noticed 
that if any of his live stock gets out of condition when 
eating dry feed in winter, the best tonic they can be 
given is fresh, succulent grass when it comes in spring. 
The dairy farmer cannot have fresh grass in winter, 
but he may approximate it by having a good supply 
of such succulent feed as corn silage and roots. It has 
been found that even where plenty of good corn silage 
is fed cows do better if given a few roots each day. 



54 MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 

CLEAN MANGERS AND SURROUNDINGS 

Filth and vile odors never contributed to the 
health nor appetite of the dairy cow. If a cow is to 
do her best as a profit maker, she must be induced to 
consume large quantities of feed. To do this her 
appetite must be keen. I have already emphasized the 
need of furnishing the cow with palatable feed that 
she may be encouraged to consume all she can convert 
into milk. I have asserted that early-cut, well-cured 
alfalfa and clover hay are excellent and palatable, but 
it avails a dairy farmer little to provide a generous 
amount of good feed and then feed it in a stable where 
vile odors overcome its aroma. 

I have often seen mangers partially filled with 
refuse that had been collecting for some time. The 
cow had been breathing upon this, and the animal mat- 
ter, moisture, and heat from her breath had started 
decomposition, the odor of which would overcome 
the aroma of the best hay ever made. 

Mangers should be cleaned of all refuse at least 
once each day. The voidings of the cows should all 
be removed at least once a day, and an occasional ap- 
plication of quicklime made to keep floors and gutters 
sweet. If this is done and the stable properly ventilated 
and lighted, there is no reason why the cow stable 
should be an ill-smelling place. Time and care spent 
upon the cow stable to make it a fit place in which to 
feed and keep the cow, will add materially to dairy 
profits. 

SUMMER FEEDING 

The preceding discussion of feeding refers espe- 
cially to winter feeding. More mistakes are made in 
the winter feeding of cows than in summer feeding. 
Nature has, in a measure, provided feed for summer 
and does her best to provide in summer just what I 



FEEDING DAIRY COWS FOR PROFIT 55 

have urged that the cow be given in winter. The vari- 
ous grasses and green legumes furnish, if the pasture 
is good, a generous amount and variety of palatable, 
succulent feed that is properly balanced, or nearly so. 
This she obtains regularly under conditions that are 
clean, sweet and wholesome. 

Should there come a bad drouth or should we have 
more stock than our pastures can supply, nature's 
efforts must be supplemented by the farmer if his 
cows are to do as well as they should. I have often 
seen herds on pasture so meager that they were only 
able by hard work to get enough grass for maintenance. 
Unless they supply other feed to supplement this pas- 
ture, the owners must expect a loss, for as I have 
already pointed out a maintenance ration alone is prac- 
tically a waste. In many dairy sections, land has be- 
come so high in value that the owner cannot afford to 
use it for pasture. An acre of tillable land planted to 
corn, and well cared for, will, as a rule, furnish about 
three times as much cow feed as the same acre in 
pasture. 

Many of our most successful dairymen have little 
or no pasture for their cows, but feed them in a yard 
or stable throughout the year. When sufficient pasture 
is lacking, corn silage should in most sections be sup- 
plied liberally for summer feeding. This can be sup- 
plemented with green crops in the following order : 
Early rye, clover, peas and oats, early sweet corn, and 
evergreen sweet corn. In some sections, such crops as 
cowpeas, soy beans and millet are grown and fed to 
advantage. 

Cows giving a good flow of milk should have grain 
in summer, whether on pasture or not. If approach- 
ing the latter part of the lactation period and abun- 
dant pasture of mixed grasses is available, they may do 
without grain for a time, if already in good flesh. 



56 MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 

Many dairy farmers seem to have the notion that 
silage, hay, and grain are to be fed to cows only in 
winter. This is a decided mistake. Keep prominently 
in mind that you are running a dairy for profit, and as 
much profit as you can fairly obtain. Do not forget 
that the only kind of feeding that enables a dairy cow 
to yield maximum profits is generous feeding, be the 
season summer or winter. 

FEEDING DRY COWS 

Cows should be dried up from four to six weeks 
before calving. This period should be considered as 
a time of partial rest, and preparation of the cow for 
the hard season of work just before her. Too often 
during this period the cow is neglected, allowed to shift 
for herself, and perhaps become weakened. This is 
poor preparation for hard work. 

A few years ago dairymen feared to have their 
cows freshen when in good flesh and thriving because 
they thought they were more likely to have milk fever. 
This may have been true, but the dairyman need no 
longer fear milk fever. If the cow is milked out for 
the first three days after calving, only enough to re- 
lieve the pressure on the udder, there is little likelihood 
of the disease. If she does show symptoms she can 
readily be relieved by filling the udder with air. 

When feeding grain to dry cows or to cows on pas- 
ture, we do not always get returns at once, but the 
returns for the years as they go prove that we cannot 
afford to let our cows become weakened or low in 
vitality. The dry cow that is to freshen soon should 
be so fed as to maintain her, nourish the developing 
calf and allow her to gain in flesh and vigor. Unless 
pasture is abundant she should be given a fair ration 
of grain. 



CHAPTER VII 

Qave of the Dairy Herd 

A dairy farmer may have a herd of cows, each 
individual of which is a splendid dairy animal. He may 
feed them generously with the best kinds of feed, but 
if they are not so cared for as to keep them com- 
fortable and healthy, they will be unable to make large 
profits to their owner. 

I once heard a great dairyman say, "A cow is a 
lady, and if she is to do her best, she must be treated 
like a lady." A better statement of the case is that 
a cow is a mother, and if she is to exercise her instinct 
of maternity to the greatest advantage to her owner, 
she must be treated as a mother should be treated. 
This may savor of sentiment, but I guarantee that if 
practiced it will prove very sensible. 

If a cow owner has a malevolent feeling toward 
his cow, loud boisterous language and the use of the 
milk stool as an instrument of chastisement may re- 
lieve his feelings; it will also relieve him of dairy 
profits. Quiet, contented and comfortable cows are in 
condition to do good dairy work. When not in this 
condition they cannot do good work. 

During my lifetime I have seen but two dogs that 
I thought might be an asset to a dairyman. I have 
seen hundreds of them on dairy farms that I knew 
were greater liabilities than their owners could afford. 
When dairy cows are hurried from the pasture to the 
barn by a dog snapping at their heels, the owner may 
calculate that he has saved some time, but he may 
know with equal assurance that the saving of time has 
cost too much. His cows give less milk, and what they 
do give is not as rich. 

57 



58 MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 

To keep a cow profitable she must be kept warm. 
One of the best cows I ever owned I bought from a 
man who sold her because she did not give enough milk. 
He said that after she freshened in the fall she would 
give a good flow of milk until cold weather and then 
the flow would shrink badly. 

I knew he had a warm barn where the cows were 
kept nights, but I knew also that no matter how cold it 
was his cows were turned out in the morning and 
kept out all day. I bought this cow, put her in a warm 
barn, and kept her there. She freshened in October 
and in less than a year gave over 14,000 pounds milk. 
She was probably the best cow that the man who sold 
her ever owned. She was spare and thin, and after 
freshening converted most of her feed into milk. This 
left her poorly fortified against the cold, and when 
she was forced to stand out of doors all day she was so 
uncomfortable that she could not do good dairy work. 
The other cows of his herd were not as good dairy 
cows as she. They carried more flesh and used more 
of their feed for fuel, hence did not suffer from the 
cold to the same extent. 

Some will say that it has been proved that fatten- 
ing steers will do nearly if not quite as well in open 
sheds as in warm barns. The steer, with a thick layer 
of fat on his body and using a large part of his feed 
for fuel, is a different proposition. The good dairy cow 
is spare in flesh, and is depleting her system every day 
to yield bountifully at the pail. 

Have a warm barn for your cows. It need not be 
an expensive one. Keep your cows in this barn when 
it is too cold for them to be outside. It is too cold for 
a dairy cow to be outside for any great length of time 
when it is too cold or windy for you to stand outside 
in your ordinary winter clothing for an hour without 
feeling chilled. 



CARE OF THE DAIRY HERD 59 

For some years my own cows have not been out- 
side the barn and the covered and inclosed barnyard 
from the time they came in from pasture in the fall 
until they went out to pasture in the spring. Some say 
that cows should move around when outside on cold 
days, and thus keep warm. Good dairy cows when 
turned out in the cold usually hump up and suffer. 
Even should they keep warm by moving briskly about 
their owners should know that a cow cannot use her 
feed to furnish energy and muscle and still have that 
feed to convert into milk. It is much more profitable 
to protect the cow from the cold than to force her to 
use her feed for fuel. When you see a dairy herd out 
of doors and unprotected for any great length of time 
in cold, windy weather, you may safely assert that the 
owner is advertising a system of dairying that never 
has proved very profitable and never will. 

Some dairymen say they want their cows to have 
exercise. They should understand that a cow elabor- 
ating from 35 to 40 pounds of good milk in a day is 
doing as much work as a horse that helps plow two 
acres of sod. If you are keeping your dairy cows to 
produce milk, you had better keep them at it, and fur- 
nish them conditions under which they can work to 
the best advantage. It will, of course, do cows good 
rather than harm to be allowed to move about some- 
what, provided they can do so under comfortable con- 
ditions. 

WATERING COWS 

Cows need constant access to pure, clean water of 
moderate temperature. Individual drinking pots are 
good if kept clean and supplied with running water. 
Cows do very well if allowed to go to a water tank 
twice a day. They should not be forced to drink ice 
cold water. When forced to do so they will not as a 



60 MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 

rule drink until quite thirsty and will then drink a large 
quantity. This is especially true if they must go out- 
side to get the water. Even if returned to the barn at 
once they will be chilled for a time. 

Rather than have the cow chilled, carry water to 
her in the barn. If the cow is watered at a tank, the 
water should be raised to a moderate temperature by 
the use of a tank heater. To say nothing of the evil 
effects of chilling, it is cheaper to use wood or coal to 
warm water than to use high-priced dairy feeds as fuel. 

HEALTHY COWS AND PROFITABLE DAIRYING 

All animals that are to continue in perfect health 
must have plenty of pure, fresh air and sunshine. 
These essentials are free, so we certainly cannot afford 
to deny them to our cows. Some adequate system of 
ventilation should be provided in every dairy barn. 
The barn should be so located and have windows of 
such size and so placed as to allow the direct rays of 
the sun to reach every part of the stable. 

KEEP THE COWS CLEAN 

Cows do not eliminate so much of the waste of 
the body through the skin as does the horse, so it is not 
quite so essential that their skin be kept clean. 
Despite this, however, the cow will keep in better 
health and give more milk if her skin is kept reasonably 
clean. If the stable is supplied with properly con- 
structed gutters, so that the cow does not become 
fouled by her own excrement, going over her with a 
good stiff brush is sufficient. 

HOW TO MILK 

A good milker can do much to keep up the milk 
flow. Cows should be milked quickly and stripped out 



CARE OF THE DAIRY HERD 61 

clean. A gentle kneading of the udder will usually en- 
able the milker to get a little more milk, and this last 
milk is much richer in fat than the average of the 
whole milking. 

Occasionally we may have a cow that is an ex- 
cellent milk producer, and in spite of the fact that she 
is treated kindly is restless when milked. Unless pre- 
vented she may cause a good deal of trouble by 




OPEM PAIL SMALL-TOP TYLER PAIL OSBORNE PAIL 



Fig. 17 — The Small Top Pail Keeps Dirt from Milk 
The middle pail is most desirable for farm use. 

quickly lifting her foot and disturbing the milker, and 
perhaps upsetting the milk pail. The first impulse is to 
punish her, but this will more often exaggerate the 
fault than cure it. 

Punishment is almost sure to produce a vicious 
cow. The best plan is to strap her legs. Fasten two 
straps to a ring and buckle them tightly about her legs 
just above the hock joint. As long as she stands still 
the straps are not uncomfortable, but they prevent her 
moving her feet very much and are uncomfortable 
when she tries to do so. Every dairy should be sup- 
plied with such straps. They often can be used in 
breaking a heifer to milk, and in milking cows that 
happen to have sore teats or an inflamed udder. 



62 MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 

REGULARITY IN MILKING 

Regularity in milking as in feeding counts for a 
great deal in profitable dairying. Each milker should 
have certain cows that are his to milk. There should 
be a time set for milking, and heroic effort made to be- 
gin on time. If milk scales are used and a record 
kept of each milking the milkers can be held responsi- 
ble for results. This, as I have pointed out before, will 
encourage milkers to do their best. 

DETAILS OF FEEDING 

To me it has seemed of advantage to feed the grain 
with silage. Our cows are turned into the inclosed 
barnyard while the stables are being cleaned. While 
this is being done the mangers are swept clean and the 
silage placed in them. The grain is placed on the 
silage and once each day about four ounces salt added. 
Silage, grain and salt are then mixed together by lifting 
the middle of the pile of silage with a fork, allowing 
grain and salt to sift through. By feeding silage and 
grain together the whole mass goes to the first stomach 
and then is brought back to the mouth and remasti- 
cated. 

PLENTY OF SALT PAYS 

The physiological effect of salt is to aid and stim- 
ulate the secretions. Milk is a secretion, and experi- 
ence teaches that cows yield more milk if well supplied 
with salt. Some dairymen keep salt before their cows 
so they may help themselves. I prefer to furnish it 
with their feed. Each cow is given from three to five 
ounces a day, depending upon her size, the amount of 
milk she gives and the amount of feed she consumes. 



CHAPTER VIII 
Summer or Winter Dairying 

Shall we have our cows freshen in spring or in 
autumn ? Some dairy farmers, because of the nature 
of their market, must strive to maintain a constant and 
uniform supply of milk all the year. Much more but- 
ter is produced in summer than in winter, and the price 
of summer butter is correspondingly lower. 

I am satisfied that the dairy farmer who sells milk 
or cream to a creamery, cheese factory or condensery, 
or who makes butter on the farm, can make larger 
and more satisfactory profits by having his cows 
freshen in the fall. The months of September, Octo- 
ber and November are, in my judgment, the best sea- 
son. 

REASONS FOR AUTUMN FRESHENING 

First— Cows give their largest milk flow in the 
season of highest prices. 

Second-— The cows are giving their largest yield 
and need most attention and care when the farmer is 
most at liberty, and are dry or giving least milk through 
the heated season and the fly season. 

Third— The herd requires the least time, care and 
attention when the farmer is busiest with farm work. 

Fourth — A cow when well housed, fed, and cared 
for will give more milk in a year when freshening in 
the fall. 

Fifth— Unless one has cheap pasture land, milk 
can be produced as cheaply or more cheaply in winter 
than in summer. 



^eecf 4//ey 



A?C?/7p<2>S- 



gtZ3=^aZI 



3=t=; 



o 



3-6' 



Cow Stir// 



Afanc/re *€&?**• 



Manure rf//ey 

Fig. 19 — Floor Plan of Ideal Cow Stall 



64 



CHAPTER IX 

Dairy Barns and Equipment 

It is not so much my purpose here to advise the 
building of new dairy barns as to point out inexpensive 
ways of improving those many dairy farmers already 
have. I shall give no consideration to fancy high- 
priced buildings. I have no prejudice against finely 
furnished and high-priced dairy buildings, but I hold 
that when it comes to a matter of profit a plain inex- 
pensive dairy barn, if it meets the requirements of the 
cow, is most practical. 

If storage room for feed is needed as well as stable 
room, a bank or basement barn, properly constructed, 
is quite satisfactory. In a basement stable extra care 
should be taken to secure good drainage and plenty of 
light. Have the floor of the basement high enough 
that surface water will drain away. Keep the second 
story enough above ground to allow for good-sized 
windows all the way around the basement. 

Basement barns should have double-boarded floors 
above. When feed is stored above and dropped into 
the stable through chutes, there is sure to be more dust 
in the stable than when feed is brought in from the 
sides or ends. A satisfactory arrangement is a one- 
story stable with storage buildings for hay at one end 
and silo at the other. 

THREE REQUISITES OF DAIRY STABLE 

Whether building a new dairy stable, or altering 
an old one there are three positive essentials to keep in 
mind. The stable should be made warm, should be pro- 

63 



66 



MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 



vided with plenty of windows, and with some system of 
ventilation. 

If you have a cold stable put on new siding, chink 
it, or cover it with building paper. Building paper and 
chinking may make the stable unsightly, but your cows 
will more quickly make the profits from which you 
may build a new stable. Window glass is so cheap 
that any cow owner can afford to light his stable. It 
is not expensive to cut out the siding every few feet 
and put in windows. It pays to do it. One-fourth 
of the space all the way around at the window level 

k— «?-* 2-*" k /*'-->[ 

I i it 



c=c &— m 



Q=t&=3 



CK™ 



B^fTO 




Fig. 20 — Front Elevation of Ideal Cow Stall 



DAIRY BARNS AND EQUIPMENT 



67 



should be devoted to windows. The direct rays of the 
sun are fatal to filth and to most disease germs. A 
stable is much more healthful if it is well lighted. 

VENTILATION A BARN NECESSITY 



Ventilation means simply a change of air. Barn 
ventilation is good if it provides for changing the air 
often enough to keep it reasonably pure. It may be 
provided by opening windows, but this creates a draft 
and in cold weather unduly lowers the temperature 
inside. If ventilation is to be secured in this way mus- 
lin should be tacked over the openings in cold weather. 



/i'ffpe 




Fig. 21 — Rear Elevation of Ideal Cow Stall 



68 MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 

A better system is to let fresh air into the stable 
through small openings and pass it out through open- 
ings in the ceiling. 

The best known method of ventilating a stable is 
by the King system. This consists of a system of flues. 
The fresh air flues open on the outside three or four 
feet below the ceiling, run upward along the wall and 
open into the stable near the ceiling. There should be 
several of these fresh air flues, and they should be on 
at least two sides of the stable. 

The impure air is drawn out through one or more 
flues opening near the floor and extending up to a 
point a few feet above the ridge of the roof. All these 
flues are air tight. By this system the fresh cold air 
enters the stable near the ceiling and is mixed there 
with the warm air. The air drawn ofr is the cold air 
near the floor. 

The intakes should be about six inches square and 
the outlets two feet square. One such outlet will pro- 
vide for 20 cows. If there are 30 to 50 cows, provide 
two such outlets, one at each end of the stable. The 
intake flues should be provided with valves so that in 
very cold or windy weather the circulation of air may 
be controlled. 

HITCHING THE COW 

There are many ways of fastening cows in the 
stable. I do not care to recommend any one way. Give 
them as much liberty as is consistent with cleanliness. 

STABLE FLOORS 

Cement is the best material for the floor of a cow 
stable. If desired the bench upon which the cows 
stand and lie down may be covered with wood, cork 



CHAPTER X 

Grops for the Dairy Farm 

To fairly cover the above subject would require 
a book by itself. I shall not attempt here to even speak 
of the numerous crops that can be grown to advantage 
some years, or in some sections, either for winter feed- 
ing or for soiling. I wish, however, to offer a few 
suggestions worth considering in every section every 
year. 

Corn should be grown on every dairy farm where 
it is possible to grow corn. It should mostly be stored 
in silos for winter and summer feeding. For the silo, 
grow corn that will produce a large tonnage, but grow 
corn that will mature in your climate. Immature corn 
makes sour, unwholesome silage, low in nutrients. 
Rather than grow very large stalks plant the corn thick, 
thus growing more and smaller stalks. When planting 
corn for silage I use 50% more seed than when plant- 
ing corn to husk. Cut the corn and put it in the silo 
just as it reaches maturity. 

ALFALFA AND CLOVER 

Many farmers are just beginning to realize some- 
thing of the immense value of alfalfa as a dairy feed. 
Possibly there are sections in this country where alfalfa 
cannot be grown, but it is now being profitably pro- 
duced in many sections where a few years ago it was 
thought impossible. When you consider that a ton 
of good alfalfa hay is worth nearly as much for feed 
as a ton of oats or wheat bran, and that even as far 
north as northern Michigan three crops a year can be 

71 



72 MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 

grown, you are forced to conclude that a special effort 
to get this crop started on your farm is well worth 
while. 

But little trouble has been experienced in getting 
the seed to grow on almost any soil. The trouble is 
to get the young plant to live and thrive through the 
first year. I feel like urging every dairy farmer to try 
growing a small plot of alfalfa on his farm. Nearly 
every experiment station has been studying alfalfa. I 
advise each farmer to write the station of his state 
asking for information on growing the plant in his 
locality. 

I am sure that the following advice to those who 
have never grown alfalfa will be found practical in 
every section. Select a plot of fertile, well-drained 
soil. Plow it early and work it well. If the plot is 
not too weedy, sow part of it as early in spring as you 
can. Cultivate the rest of the plot thoroughly until 
late June or July, or until the land is in good condition 
for germinating the seed, then sow it. Use about 15 
pounds seed per acre. 

If there is an old alfalfa field within reasonable 
distance where a load of soil can be obtained, get it 
and scatter it over at least a part of the plot. If soil 
cannot be obtained secure an inoculating culture from 
your experiment station. If they cannot furnish it 
they will be able to tell you where to get it. This 
should be used on the seed before sowing. Directions 
for using it accompany the culture. Sowing 400 
pounds an acre of soil from an old alfalfa field and 
covering immediately is a successful way to inoculate 
your soil. 

Alfalfa will not do well where the soil is sour or 
lacking in lime. Scatter over at least a part of each 
plot a liberal supply of air-slacked lime. If you fail 
in the first attempt, try again. By treating different 



CROPS FOR THE DAIRY FARM 



73 



parts of your plot differently you may be able to learn 
when to sow the seed and what to supply to make the 
crop successful. If you learn how to grow the crop 
the results will many times over repay you for the 
effort. 

When a good stand of alfalfa is secured it should 
stand for a term of years. It will be some years yet 
before the average dairy farmer is ready to discard 
clover entirely, if that time ever comes. 




Fig. 23 — Cross Section of Farm Milk House 



CHAPTER XI 
Silos and Silage 

At one time silos were considered a sort of rich 
man's luxury; now they are recognized as the poor 
man's necessity. A few dairy farmers are putting off 
building a silo until they have rearranged or built a dairy 
barn. Others are not yet persuaded that they need one 
or can afford it. To these I submit the following facts : 




Fig. 24 — Floor Plan of Farm Milk House 



The silo is one of the cheapest forms of a success- 
ful storage building. What sort of a building can you 
erect for the same cost that will successfully store so 
much good cow feed? 



71 



SILOS AND SILAGE 75 

A corn crop can be harvested and put in a silo at 
less cost than it can be husked and stored. 

By placing a field of corn in the silo the farmer 
conserves a greater proportion of its feeding value than 
is possible in any other form. 

As silage, the cows eat and relish the stalks as well 
as the leaves and grain. 

As silage the crop is more palatable than when 
field cured and this is of immense advantage to the cow 
owner. The crop retains its natural plant juices, which 
materially aid the cow in digesting and assimilating 
this and other feeds. 

Silos should be round, perpendicular, smooth on 
the inside, and air tight. They may be built of wood, 
tile, or cement. Cement silos are rapidly coming into 
use, and where suitable sand for building can be secured 
within reasonable distance, are not much more expen- 
sive to build than wooden ones. The foundation of a 
cement silo should be broad and strong, the walls well 
reinforced with strong wire, and the inside plastered 
with a rich cement mortar. A farmer with six cows 
can afford to have a silo. If he has more than six he 
cannot afford to be without one. 



CHAPTER XII 

Farm Qare of Milk and Qream 

American dairy products might be much enhanced 
in value, and the health of infants and adults who con- 
sume milk materially safeguarded, were more care used 
in milking and in handling milk and cream. Milk sours 
and decomposes through the action of minute organ- 
isms that get into it during the process of milking and 
afterwards. Warm milk is almost a perfect medium 




Fig. 25 — Cross Section of Farm Milk House 

76 



FARM CARE OF MILK AND CREAM 



77 



for the growth and multiplication of such organisms. 
The death of many babies as well as of older children 
and adults can be directly traced to the indifference of 
dairy farmers in drawing the milk and caring for it. 
Contrary to the belief of many, this is as true of those 
living on farms as of those living in cities. 

Many diseases are the direct results of bad milk, 
and many other diseases prove fatal because the patient 
has been weakened by consuming unwholesome milk. 
Stable air and the air in unclean, poorly ventilated 
stables is loaded with organisms. Minute particles of 
filth that may drop into the milk from the sides or 
udder of the cow usually contain millions of such 
germs. These often double in numbers every 15 to 
20 minutes while the milk remains warm. Cleanliness 
and cold, and keeping away from everything that pro- 





6" SH'Pi-ftP- 



er£r/-7fi-/V7- 



Fig. 26 — Side Elevation of Farm Milk House 



78 



MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 



duces odors are the essentials for good milk and other 
dairy products. Keep the cow and stable clean. Milk 
with clean, dry .hands and remove the milk from the 
stable as soon as drawn. Cool the milk down to 50 
degrees as quickly as possible or separate and cool the 
cream. Bacteria multiply very slowly in cold milk. 

A farmer who kills an animal in hot weather will 
get the meat cool as quickly as he can to prevent its 
spoiling, but will often take but little pains to cool milk 
that, unless cooled, spoils much more quickly. Milk, 
cream, and butter absorb most quickly the disagreeable 
odors of a barn, of vegetables, of a damp cellar or of 
decaying substances. They should be kept away from 
such odors. Prevent as far as possible filth and germs 
getting into the milk, cool quickly, and keep in a clean, 
sweet, cool place. 




Fig. 27 — Front Elevation of Farm Milk House 



CHAPTER XIII 
The Outlook for Dairying 

The outlook for dairying for many years to come 
is promising. The cow is an economical producer. 
The cities are constantly calling for more good milk. 
The consumption of ice cream is rapidly increasing. 
If our dairy products are good enough there is no 
danger of over-production. 

The greatest menace to the dairy industry is the 
fraudulent, and dishonest competition of oleomargarine 
and other substitutes for dairy products. Oleomar- 
garine is a legitimate product, and dairy farmers should 
not and do not object to it if sold for what it is. They 
do object, and should object, to its being made to look 
like butter and sold for butter. Millions of pounds are 
now being so made and sold each year. Oleomargarine 
makers do not color their product to make it taste bet- 
ter nor to increase its food value, but rather that it may 
go on the market masked under the characteristics of 
butter, and sold under a filched reputation. Farmers 
and consumers the country over should demand of 
Congress the enactment of a law preventing the color- 
ing of oleomargarine in imitation of yellow butter. 



79 



By-Laws of Testing Associations 



ARTICLE I 

The name of this association shall be the cow test- 
ing association. 

ARTICLE II 

The purpose for which it is formed is generally to promote 
the dairy interests of its members and particularly to provide 
means and methods of improving the dairy qualities of cows 
and for the testing of cows of the members not less than once 
a month. 

ARTICLE III 
Its principal place of business shall be at , . 



ARTICLE IV 

Section 1. The board of directors shall consist of seven 
members, of whom a majority shall constitute a quorum. They 
shall be elected annually to hold office for one year and until 
the election of their successors, the first election to be held 

on the day of , 19 — , and subsequent elections to 

be held on the day of in each year, except when 

such day falls on Sunday, in which case the election shall be 
held on the Monday following. 

Sec. 2. The board of directors shall have the management 
and control of the business of the association, shall employ 
such agents and employees as they deem advisable, and shall 
fix the rates of compensation of all officers, agents and em- 
ployees. 

Sec. 3. Vacancies in the board of directors, or officers, may 
be filled by a majority vote of the remaining members of the 
board. The person so elected shall serve for the remainder 
of the unexpired term. 

ARTICLE V 

The annual meeting of the members of this association 
shall be held on the date above fixed for the election of direc- 
tors in , , at a place to be designated by the board 

of directors. 



BY-LAWS OF TESTING ASSOCIATIONS 81 

Special meetings of the members may be called by the 
president or by the board of directors. Notice of all meetings 
of the members of the association, whether annual or special, 
should be given to the members by the secretary, or by mail- 
ing to each member a written or printed notice thereof, at 
least five days prior to the date of said meeting. 

ARTICLE VI 

The board of directors shall meet on the day of each 

month, unless there shall be a resolution to determine upon 
a different date. Notice of such meeting shall be given by 
the secretary by mailing to each director a written or printed 
notice thereof, at least three days before date of said meeting. 

ARTICLE VII 

Section 1. The officers of the association shall consist of 
a president, vice-president, and secretary-treasurer, who shall 
have the usual powers and perform the customary duties in- 
cident to these offices. The office of secretary-treasurer shall 
be held by one person who, besides performing the usual duties 
appertaining to the offices of secretary and treasurer, shall 
keep in a permanent form, subject to the direction of the board 
of directors, the cow-testing records of members of the asso- 
ciation, and who shall be authorized to receive all moneys due 
the association and to pay any indebtedness of the association, 
and in general to transact all routine and other business of 
the association subject to the direction of the board of direc- 
tors. 

Sec. 2. The officers shall be elected by the board of direc- 
tors from among their number, the election to be held imme- 
diately subsequent to the annual meeting of the members. 

ARTICLE VIII 

Election of officers shall be by ballot, each member being 
entitled to cast only one vote for each of the seven directors 
to be elected ; provided, hotvever, that each member making 
payment to the association of testing charges on more than 
20 cows shall be entitled to an additional vote (for the full 
number of directors to be elected) for each additional 20 cows 
so paid for by him. Any member unable to be present at any 
meeting of the association may be represented by anyone 
interested in the management of the dairy of the member. 

ARTICLE IX 

Any dairyman entering into an agreement with the officers 
of the association binding him to pay the testing charges for 



82 MAKING THE DAIRY PAY 

one year on the cows owned by him shall, subject to the ap- 
proval of the board of directors, be considered a member of 
the association. Failure to make any payments agreed on as 
testing charges shall make a delinquent member liable to 
suspension, which may be imposed by the board of directors 
in such case at their option. 

ARTICLE X 

These by-laws may be amended, added to or altered, by a 
majority vote of all members present at the annual meeting or 
at a special meeting called for the purpose, each member in 
such case being entitled to one vote only. 

Testing Outfit Ordered by the Stanislaus (Cal.) Cow- 
Testing Association 

1 24-bottle Twentieth Century tester, $23.40 
6 dozen 6-inch 10 per cent, bottles at $1.50, 9.00 

2 dozen 17.6 c. c. pipettes at $1.50, 3.00 
y 2 dozen 17.5 acid measure, .60 
y 2 dozen O. B. skim milk bottles, 2.80 

2 pair dividers, .45 
1 dozen milk test bottle brushes, .30 
1 60-pound automatic scale, 5.00 
1 piece galvanized iron with holes for utility bath, .50 
1 carboy clear acid, about 3.50 
1 utility bath, 24 6-inch bottles, 1.35 
8 dozen 2-oz. aluminum screw-top sample bottles, 3.00 
Yz dozen brushes for same, .60 

3 feet 3-16-inch tubing, pinch cock, and pipette, .50 
1 oil stove, 2.00 

1 copper kettle with nipple and tubing attachment, 2.15 

2 glass stopper bottles for acid, .50 
1 coal oil can, .25 

Total, $58.90 

(The last four items were bought at local store.) 

Contract for Cow-Testing Association 

The following contract is used by a successful cow-testing 
association in California : 

We, the undersigned dairymen, in consideration of the 
periodical (one day each month) testing of our cows during 

the season of by , Secretary-Treasurer of the 

cow testing association, hereby agree to pay the said 

, the sum of one and one-half ($1.50) dollars for every 

cow so tested for us. We hereby agree to pay this sum per 



BY-LAWS OF TESTING ASSOCIATIONS (S3 

cow in three installments in advance — 75 cents per cow, March 
1 ; 50 cents per cow June 1 ; and 25 cents per cow September 1. 
We further agree that we will pay the first installment of 
75 cents when due on the number of cows set opposite our 
names; and the 50-cent and 25-cent installments when due 
upon the number of cows set opposite our names and upon 
all other cows tested in like proportion. It is understood that 
each member may be allowed to replace not to exceed one- 
fifth of the orignal number of cows entered. 

We further agree to provide suitable board and lodging 
for the agent of the association, and feed and stable for his 
horse, when said agent is actually engaged in testing our cows, 
including Sundays and holidays. 

It is understood that this contract is not binding unless 
700 cows have been entered by , 19 — . 

Dated Signature Number of Cows Amount 



Index 



Tage 

Alfalfa, how to grow it 71-72 

wonderful dairy feed 51 

Balanced ration 45 

Balancing a ration 47-49 

Barns, bank or basement 65 

essential for dairy 65-66 

floors for 63-70 

light for 66-67 

ventilation a necessity 67-68 

warmth of 58 

Barnyard, covered 59 

covered and inclosed 70 

Breed, choice of, for dairy 12 

Breeds, leading dairy 12 

Breed tests of production 19 

Brewers' grains 51 

Bull, age for use in breeding 15 

indications of merit 14 

selecting for dairy improve- 
ment 14-15 

Butter, comparative cost of pro- 
duction 6 

Cement floor for barn 70 

Comparative profits, dairy versus 

non-dairy type 17 

Cottonseed meal 51 

Cottonseed meal, relative value of 52 
Cow, how to keep from kicking. . . 61 

testing associations 30-32 

testing association, by-laws for 80-83 
testing association, results se- 
cured 21 

Cows, comparisons of dairy per- 
formances 20-21 

good dairy 18 

keep fewer and better 23 

which ones pay 23-25 

Cross breeding, poor results of... 13 

Dairy, builds soils 5 

cattle, conformation of 32 

census results 11 

cow, development of 40 

cow, economical producer of 

food 5-6 

cow, length of service 7 

cow, points of 33-34 

cows, 40% unprofitable 22 

farm crops 7 1 -73 

feeds, buying by analysis 52 

herd, care of 57-62 

increases farm fertility 8 

insures steady cash income 7 

products should be clean ....77-78 

profit, essential factors of 10 

type 33-34 

type, profit in 16-17 



Page 

Dairying always paid author 7 

how author learned it 1-2 

comparative profits of 11 

involves least risk 6 

outlook favorable 79 

summer versus winter 63 

versus cow keeping 10 

Farm labor problems 9 

Feed, necessity for succulence ... 53 

weighing 25 

Feeding, cleanliness essential .... 54 

for dairy profit 40-41 

for normal production 42 

for profit 35 

in summer 54-56 

maintenance ration 36 

ration balanced 45-47 

ration, proportion grain to 

roughage 50-51 

standard, German 49 

standard, Haecker's 50 

table, Henry's 48 

too heavily 4 1 -42 

when to feed 53 

Feeds, digestible nutrients in .... 48 

for summer use 55 

home grown 48-49 

necessity for variety 43 

what kind needed 36 

Freshening, most favorable season 

for 63 

German feeding standard 49 

Gluten meal 51 

feed 51 

Haecker's feeding standard 50 

Henry's feeding table 48 

Legumes supply nitrogen 5 

Linseed meal 51 

Middlings 51 

Milk fever 56 

record 26 

scales 25 

testing 2S-29 

weighing 27 

Milking, best methods of 60-61 

regularity pays in 62 

Nitrogen, securing it from legumes 5 
Oleomargarine, unfair dairy com- 
petitor 79 

Palatability necessary in feeds.... 43 
Palatable feed, how to secure it. . 44 

Protein for milk production 46 

Ration, how to balance 47 

Rations, wide and narrow 49 

Silage, corn best crop for 48 

Silo, advantages of 75 

Ventilation, King system 68 



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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



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